Lean on Me
by Aquilon
Summary: Sasuke is at the end of his rope, and when he has nowhere else to turn he goes to see his friend from childhood, but this friend has changed in a way Sasuke would never expect. FemNaru x Sasu, Rated T for now.
1. Rock Bottom

Lean on me chapter one

Ok I won't go into many details on what this fiction is about, the first chapter will pretty much explain it, this is a Female Naruto fiction with a twist to most you come across, you'll figure it out pretty soon.

**Rock-Bottom**

"Have you ever looked back on life and thought of what may have happened if you didn't make such foolish decisions? Have you ever wished you could start everything all over again? Well I have and I am at this very moment." Sasuke lifelessly questioned over the phone, he was looking rather tired, and tired he was, tired of having to wake up every morning to the same old shit.

"I think everyone has times when they think of what may have been if they'd just did things a little differently, but since it's impossible we have to do what we can to move on, despite how troublesome it may be" a woman replied in a lazy, tired tone. It wasn't what Sasuke wanted to hear, even if it was the truth.

"Aren't you guys supposed to be a bit less depressing?" Sasuke questioned angrily as he gripped the handle of a rather 'inviting' gun tightly, "I mean I could pull the trigger at any moment, and you'll have to live with that for the rest of your life" Sasuke commented in a rather sadistic tone, he even chuckled slightly.

"Well if I told you everything would be okay you wouldn't believe me anyway, would you like me to tell you a pile of lies, because if it'll make you stop I could lie all day for you" the woman replied sarcastically to the mentally unstable Sasuke, it was as if she was trying to make him pull the trigger.

"Well it'd be better than hearing the same old crap I hear everywhere else!" Sasuke screamed down the phone, causing him to mentally curse his stupidity, speaking that loud was going to make things even more difficult.

At that moment Sasuke heard his daughter moan inside her room and some bed sheets rustle, he'd obviously woke her up with his shouting, and it scared him, he didn't want her to see him like this, he didn't want her to see what he was about to do.

"Hello are you still there?" the voice asked over the phone snapping Sasuke out of his little trance.

"Oh yeah I'm still here" Sasuke replied slowly, watching the hallway for any sign of his daughter, hoping that she just went back to bed.

"So you understand right?" the voice asked confusing Sasuke who hadn't been listening to a word he'd said.

"No, I was kind of distracted by something, would you go back over it again?" Sasuke asked in little more than a whisper, the shock of his daughter waking up slightly calmed him.

"What were you distracted by?" the voice asked, ignoring Sasuke's question, "By the way you're whispering I guess it's a person right?" the voice asked rather inquisitively, seriously what was this person supposed to be a detective or something?

"My daughter woke up" Sasuke replied quietly as he heard the floorboards creak in the direction of the hallway, "I don't want her to see this you know?" Sasuke said in a guilty voice, but his comment obviously irked the woman over the phone.

"You were going to kill yourself as your daughter slept, are you really that selfish?" the girl asked angrily, to her Sasuke was sick, who would kill themselves with their daughter in the house, especially under these circumstances, after all, this wasn't the first call she'd received from Sasuke so she knew full well that his wife and what she assumed to be his daughters mother, was dead.

"You don't understand, she'd benefit from this!" Sasuke shouted angrily, which unfortunately caught his daughter's attention since he heard loud footsteps approaching the living room.

"She would benefit from her father killing himself? Do you really believe that?" the woman asked as his daughter burst into the room with a concerned, slightly scared look on her face.

"D-daddy?" the little girl asked in a frightened tone, she had yet to see the gun in her father's hands. Sasuke sat quietly for a few seconds prompting an "are you okay?" from his daughter.

Sasuke did his best to fake a smile, "Go back to bed Rei everything is okay" he told her in a put-on fatherly tone, he couldn't let her see what was going on.

His daughter stared at him briefly with her black eyes which she'd inherited from him and shook her head in defiance, angering him, "no!" she shouted childishly, loud enough for the woman on the other side of the phone to here.

"Go back to bed Rei" Sasuke told her again, this time in a louder, more agitated tone, scaring his daughter in the process, despite this his daughter walked towards him slowly, causing Sasuke to panic as he tried to conceal the gun.

"Daddy what's wrong?" the little girl asked, sounding as if she was on the verge of tears.

"Nothing is wrong Rei" Sasuke replied quickly, the frustration in his tone of voice was hard to miss, and Rei visibly flinched in response to his words.

Yet despite this she still approached him, by this point Sasuke completely forgot that someone was listening in on the whole scene. "Rei, sweetie please just go back to bed, daddy really can't deal with this right now" Sasuke begged, but the little girl still wouldn't stop moving towards him.

"Is it about mommy?" the little girl asked causing Sasuke's eye to twitch and anger to boil inside him, _"Don't get angry, Don't get angry, she's just a child she just doesn't understand" _Sasuke tried to reason with himself, but her comment hit too close to home for him to ignore it.

"REI GET BACK TO BED RIGHT NOW!" Sasuke ordered, not asked, ordered, he was furious, not at his daughter, not at his dead wife, but at himself, more specifically at how could he allow himself to be angered by the words of a concerned child, his child in particular.

Rei jumped in fright at his words and stumbled back a little, eyes brimming with tears as she fell over on her backside, "s-s-s-sorry I didn't mean to" was all she said before she got back to her feet and sprinted back to her room as she cried her eyes out.

Sasuke reached out and tried to shout out to her, to apologise, but he couldn't, instead he picked up the phone and continued talking with the woman as if nothing happened, "I'm back now" was all Sasuke said as he pulled the gun closer to his head.

"That's all, I'm back, is that all you have to say?" the woman asked, completely unaware that Sasuke was moments away from pulling the trigger.

"What else can I say, I just scared the living shit into my daughter, my wife is dead, me and my daughter are going to be evicted from this apartment tomorrow, my job can't afford to keep us alive, my parents have abandoned me, what else do you want me to say?" Sasuke screamed back as tears fell, he was at rock bottom.

"So you're just going to leave your daughter to fend for herself?" the woman asked in an irritated manner.

"Of course not, my parents would take Rei in, after all, it wouldn't be hard to make her look like any other member of my family, she's young too which makes it easier for them to get the 'perfect' grand-daughter that they wanted, don't you understand, even without me Rei wouldn't be alone, only I am alone!" Sasuke screamed, finally getting his last insecurity off his chest, his loneliness to be precise.

"Sir, I have a question for you" the woman on the phone replied, catching Sasuke's full attention. "Do you seriously have no-where to go, no-where to turn, think long and hard about this right now" the woman on the phone asked in a strict voice, which made Sasuke actually consider listening.

As Sasuke searched for an answer he allowed his finger to hover over the trigger, _"Do I really have nowhere to go? What kind of question is that, of course I have thought about this before, but there is no-one left for me in this world, except Rei that is, I mean, I never made friends after high school, and even in high school I didn't have many 'friends' except for Sakura and Naruto" _and then it hit him.

"Naruto…." Sasuke whispered slightly, not loud enough for the woman over the phone to hear clearly.

"What was that?" she asked

"O-one person perhaps, but I wouldn't know where to find him; I doubt he'd be still living at home." Sasuke replied, stuttering a little as he lowered his gun slightly.

"What about his parents?" the woman suggested, doing her best to stir this mentally unstable man onto the right path, it took some time, but maybe this could help solve this guy's problem.

"They might still be around, but I haven't spoken to any of them in years, how would it look if I just arrived on their doorstep one day, asking them where to locate their son? It'd be too embarrassing, anyway I doubt they'd answer me, they always thought of me as a bad influence" Sasuke finished.

The woman on the other side of the phone just sighed, not knowing the names of your callers made conversations rather hard. "I'm sure it'll be fine, this time I'm not lying, why don't you just try, I mean you're at rock-bottom right? All you can do is move up" she said rather enthusiastically.

"Yeah I suppose…. Thanks" Sasuke replied and put his gun to the floor.

"No problem" the woman responded, she now had a wide smile on her face.

"Hey, can I ask you your name?" Sasuke asked, wanting to thank the woman for all the help she'd given him, she'd spoken to him before last time he called suicide hotline, maybe it was just some weird twist of fate.

"It's Naru" the woman replied, surprising Sasuke slightly.

"_Nearly Naruto" _Sasuke thought smirking slightly as a small laugh escaped his mouth.

"Hmm what's made you happy all of a sudden?" the woman asked, now feeling much more awake.

"Ah nothing, your name its familiar, that's all." Sasuke replied, "thank you Naru."

"It's no problem umm" Naru replied, obviously looking for the correct phrase to call him, Sasuke picked up on this.

"It's Sasuke" he offered, surprising the young woman, his name was very familiar to her as well. _"Could it be?" _Naru thought before quickly dismissing it. "Well I best be going, goodnight" Sasuke offered politely, he had been given some lifeline, and he was feeling slightly appreciative.

"Goodnight" Naru replied and at that the phone clicked.

* * *

"Sasuke" the woman whispered as she pushed back from her desk and left the call centre of her voluntary job, "I once knew a man by that name, I doubt he'd recognise me now" she mused out loud before looking to the floor feeling rather sad, "life moves on maybe I should take my own advice?" she told herself as she opened the door of her car.

* * *

(End of Chapter)

Hmm okay, not the best chapter to start a fiction with but I guess it'll do, trust me the quality of writing will increase next chapter, but it was hard to get the attempted suicide scene right, next chapter has Sasuke finally moving towards being healed of his problems and expect the next chapter rather soon.

Reviews would be appreciated, but what's more important is enjoying the story. :)

-Aquilon


	2. Destined Destination

**Lean on me Chapter two**

Ok everyone chapter two for you, this is because all of you are so fantastic especially you reviewers, I was rather impressed that I got that many reviews in less than a day, I know six reviews isn't a lot, but it's a start.

About Naru and what exactly she is, as in crossdresser or always a girl or something like that, let's just see about that, the answer will be revealed pretty soon.

Ah that's enough for spoilers; enjoy the chapter, because this one is being released so fast because of your reviews which have inspired me to write.

**Destined Destination **

The alarm on his old mobile phone went off, emitting a sharp sound which always awoke him from his sleep, no matter how deep he was inside his nightmares, that sound always broke him out of them, just to thrust him into a bigger nightmare, reality.

He had spent hours on the phone last night, he was up until at least 3am he guessed, now with a clear mind he realised how stupid he was. "What was I thinking?" he whispered to himself as he rolled onto his back to get comfortable, after all, Sasuke slept on the floor, he didn't have a bed, he could only afford one, and that was for Rei.

He had always made sure he could provide for Rei, it was what his wife would have wanted, and it was what he wanted, Rei was quite possibly the only ray of light in his world of black. So when everything came tumbling down he couldn't take it anymore, the roof over her head, her education, her safety, the ability to eat food, and drink water whenever you wanted, all of it was coming to an end for her, it was too hard to take, he wanted to end it, end the responsibility, he realised how selfish he sounded when he thought this and it sickened him.

After the call he had spent an hour packing the necessary items he'd need when they were evicted, Sasuke didn't own much himself, after all he worked in a job where he was sure he wasn't even getting minimum wage, but he took any job he could to provide for his daughter.

He packed the few clothes he owned into an old worn-out bag, this bag was for his possessions, he had a separate suitcase for Rei, he knew eviction was coming, he couldn't get a loan, so he spent some of his remaining money on a suitcase so Rei could keep enough stuff for herself, it was the most he could do for his daughter, he felt powerless from this mere thought.

"I thought I was supposed to be something" Sasuke mumbled in slight depression, "In high school I was seen as a prodigy, I could have went anywhere in life, instead I made a few mistakes, had a child too early which prevented me from going onto further training, then I got married under the pretences of taking responsibility for my actions, and then she died on me" Sasuke whispered again, and though it may have sounded like it, he didn't regret Rei in the slightest, his five year old daughter was everything to him after all.

Taking no longer to dwell on the past, Sasuke got up off his back and got dressed into his shabby clothes, he took no time to have a shower, that wasn't important right now, instead he had to focus on packing his daughters stuff and then getting out of the small one bedroom apartment without her understanding a thing, he needed to make her unaware, and as he thought last night, maybe he'd strike some luck, maybe his oldest friend (who he hadn't spoken to in years) would help him out, sure it was desperate and it went against his pride, but Sasuke had no other choice, Naruto was the last place to turn.

He still had a little money, he could get a bus and try and play on the pity of the driver, this could get Rei on for free, once again it was a desperate move, but he had no choice. "First I have to find his parents, they should still live in Konoha if I remember correctly" Sasuke said to himself as he opened his daughters door quietly to see his daughter sleeping with what seemed to be a frown on her face, she must have still been upset from last night, that's when a familiar scent filled his nostrils, "urine… great, I must have been too hard on her" Sasuke mumbled angrily, he wouldn't wake her up just yet, first he needed to pack her stuff then he'd deal with the… mess.

He spent little under an hour packing everything she'd need into the suitcase, from her clothes to her toys. He even put a few things into his own bag which was limited in space, once finished he turned to look at his daughter, the girl who was blissfully unaware of all of this, he'd do his best to keep her in the dark, he also swore that no matter what, he'd let her grow up in a stable environment, even if he had to resort to begging at the feet of his father.

He walked over to his daughter and shook her gently as he whispered "Rei get up" it seemed to have the desire effect since he woke up rather fast, but just as she woke up, she began to cry.

"D-daddy I-I" she tried to explain, but Sasuke already knew about her little 'accident' it always happened when she was scared, so Sasuke felt responsible for the incident completely.

"Shh I know, just get out of your clothes and go have a shower, I'll deal with everything okay?" Sasuke told the little girl who was still sobbing, but she seemed to understand since she shook her head. "Good girl" Sasuke praised with a smile on his face, this seemed to settle the little girl slightly, "I'm sure you can shower yourself right?" Sasuke continued, "You're a big girl now after all" Sasuke hinted, this always made Rei want to try to do things herself, always insisting that she was a 'big' girl.

She nodded enthusiastically at her father and quickly stripped out of her night clothes, Sasuke just stood there, he'd seen his daughter like that enough times to not affect him at all, just as she ran out the room she turned to Sasuke and said "I'm a big girl now" with a bright smile on her face and bounded out the door, this made Sasuke happy to have such a good daughter.

"I just hope she doesn't inherit her mother's anger" he joked to himself sadly as he stripped the bedding, it wasn't going to be needed anymore, but he didn't want to just leave it there, he then picked up his daughters clothes and ran them under water in the sink, sure it wasn't a washing machine, but he had no time, he'd make sure they were properly cleaned later.

After this he picked out an outfit for her and got some new underwear out for her, he placed it inside the bathroom whilst she was still showering, he told her that whilst she should put on her own underwear, he'd help her if she was having trouble with the clothes themselves, she shouted out him that she was a big girl, but he knew she'd find it slightly difficult, so he just laughed slightly and walked out and over to the living room where he threw himself down on the old sofa.

"I should have gotten more sleep" he complained as he ran his hand over his cheek, "maybe I should have a shower and then a shave, I don't want to look like a hobo" he said to himself as he heard the water stop running in the shower, they had one of those showers which could be turned off like a tap, it wasn't a real shower, it just funnelled water through a pipe from the hot water tap, this then came out of a shower head, making it easy for Rei to use herself. "I really shouldn't have to make her do stuff like that by herself" he told himself, but he knew Rei got embarrassed when he helped her bathe, and he didn't want to upset his daughter, especially after last night.

After a few minutes he heard a whining noise, and then a "Daddyyy" this meant she was having trouble with her clothes, Sasuke laughed slightly and walked to the bathroom where he saw Rei with her head through the sleeves, it was rather funny to look at but he didn't laugh.

"What is it sweetie?" he asked in a voice which made it seem as if he had no idea what was wrong.

"I-I can't get this on" she whined in frustration "c-c-can you help me, pwease" she asked, Rei was rather good at speaking, yet she sometimes made mistakes with pronunciation.

"Okay then" Sasuke said with a smile as he knelt down and helped her out of her little trouble he then helped her into her skirt which had suspenders, he quickly did this for her too, he then looked down and said "all done" in a cheerful voice, which was put on for her.

"Thanks daddy" the little girl said happily, with that bright smile of hers, Sasuke smiled back at his beautiful daughter, her unnatural pink hair and her black eyes and that bright smile, she was adorable and to him, and bar her black eyes which she got from him, she looked like her mother.

"Now shall we have some breakfast?" he asked which he jumped at happily, so he took her hand and walked into the living room, he told her to sit whilst he made her a simple bowl of cereal. _"She is so unaware that the life we have is so bad" _Sasuke thought sadly as she looked at his daughter kicking her legs back and forth happily as she sat on the sofa.

He put the bowl in her hands at that moment and said he was going to have a shower, she didn't really listen to him but he didn't mind. _"After this I'll return the keys and we'll head to Konoha on a… day trip, or so Rei will believe" _Sasuke thought sadly as he opened the door to the bathroom, he stripped off his clothes and climbed into the shower, it took some time but he managed to mix the right amount of hot and cold water going into the pipe of his 'shower' since you couldn't adjust temperature, you needed to use the right amount of hot and cold water, Rei was unnaturally gifted at this, unlike her father.

"_It's been what 8 years, I mean Naruto left high school around the age of 14, family reasons was the reason if I remember correctly, I knew where they moved but, we drifted out of touch, I wonder how much he's changed, he's probably forgotten who I am anyway" _Sasuke thought depressively as the hot, nearly scolding water hit his skin. _"No worries, I need to stay strong for Rei, it'll work out… somehow" _Sasuke thought, trying to be optimistic for a change.

He didn't stay in the shower too long, after all he was on a tight schedule, he guessed that he could get to Konoha by 12, it was a two hour trip by bus, the bus to Konoha, well more like coach, arrived in one hour intervals, and it was now 9am so he needed to get to the bus depot by 10am.

After getting dressed into the clothes he was just wearing, which was a plain white shirt with a black 01 on it and some rather old, but not too bad looking black jeans he had a shave and did his hair, now Sasuke didn't like being vain, but he did pride himself on his appearance, he didn't want to see people looking at him as if he was some kind of homeless guy, even if he technically was.

Once finished he walked out of the bathroom and to Rei's room to fetch the suitcase and his old bag and brought it into the living room, he then made sure to turn off all electrical appliances at the mains, he was told to by the landlord, so he did so.

Rei looked at him in confusion but he just smiled and took the bowl from her and washed it in the sink "we're going on a day trip to Konoha, we'll see one of my old friends, don't worry Rei" Sasuke said as his back was towards the girl, he couldn't lie to her about this when looking at her.

The girl giggled slightly, he guessed she was excited, it broke his heart to lie to her, but he had to, for now he'd keep her in the dark, and soon he'd make sure she had a better life than she had right now. "So are you ready to go?" Sasuke asked enthusiastically, she nodded and ran over to him clasping his hand, he then threw the old bag over his shoulder and grabbed her suitcase, luckily he could carry it one handed.

Taking one last look at the home he'd lived in for the last two years, Sasuke smiled sadly, then closed the door, it was the start to a new beginning, he descended the stairs and too the reception area of the apartment to hand in the keys.

* * *

After a five minute discussion with the old lady in reception Sasuke handed over the keys, the old woman looked at him with a sad look on her face and then reached down underneath the counter and held a lollipop out for Rei, this small action gained Sasuke's gratitude, after a quick thank you him and a very happy Rei left the lobby and onto the streets, this he hoped was the first step towards a new life.

The two walked in silence mostly, well Rei skipped occasionally, but she was always smiling, it's sad how innocent children are, it can actually be painful to watch as a child smiles not knowing what's going on, but at the same time ignorance is bliss as some say, Sasuke wished he could have some of her innocence, it would make life so much easier or at least less stressful.

The two luckily reached the depot in time, it was about a 40 minute walk on his own, but with Rei it took a little longer, and in the end he found himself carrying Rei whilst pulling a suitcase, Sasuke had always been very strong, which was lucky for him.

Like Sasuke had expected, he had to beg the driver or at least play on his pity to let Rei on, he of course paid for himself, the driver looked at him and then his daughter and after hearing an altered version of his story, let them on with a sympathetic look on his face, Sasuke thanked the man and encouraged Rei to do the same, her smile must have melted the bus drivers heart, it did the same to everyone else's after all.

As the bus/coach went on its way to Konoha Sasuke had Rei on his lap, there wasn't enough room on the bus, Rei didn't seem to mind since she was still grinning kicking her legs playfully against mine, I decided to do the same as I thought back on my high school days.

"_Back then I had few true hobbies, but I excelled in everything I tried, this made things rather boring at times, the few things I enjoyed was acting, I was part of the drama club back then, I enjoyed music too, well what teenager doesn't enjoy music?" _he thought to himself sarcastically.

"_I remember when I was younger, it was my dream to become an actor, but after Naruto left I seemed to go to drama club less and less and spend time with Sakura instead, this led to Rei eventually, I wonder why Naruto's departure had such an effect on me?" _he wondered as he continued to playfully kick his legs.

"_If Naruto does help me, what do I do from there on, I must think of a way to live independently, it's the only way to ensure Rei's future" _Sasuke thought, but he couldn't think of anything he could do, so he left it alone for awhile, an answer would come to him eventually, that's what he hoped anyway.

Sasuke whilst kicking his legs looked out of the window, currently they were crossing a long bridge, known as the Great Naruto Bridge funnily enough, the water was a mixture of turquoise and blue, he wasn't sure what it meant, but he guessed the water wasn't that clean, but he wasn't the sort of person who cared about that sort of thing in the first place.

After about an hour and fifty minutes Konoha came into view, it was such a big city, large skyscrapers were visible from Sasuke's viewpoint, if Sasuke looked he could have seen the large monument dedicated to the founders of the city, it was on his left but he really didn't want to look, after all this was the city that he grew up in, he'd seen in plenty of times. Naruto also grew up here, but then he and his parents moved to a small neighbourhood outside the main city, at that point Sasuke and Naruto drifted apart.

"Having fun Rei?" Sasuke asked and the little girl just nodded, Sasuke smiled before continuing. "After this we have to catch another bus out of the city, my friend lives there" Sasuke lied, because he wasn't sure whether or not he lived there, but his parents probably did. "When we get to the next bus, put on a upset looking face please" Sasuke whispered into her ear surprising her.

"Why daddy?" Rei asked in confusion.

"It'll save us some money" Sasuke whispered back, and though the little girl didn't completely understand, Sasuke finished it off by saying, "money that would be spent on candy for you" and that made her agree instantly, Rei loved her candy like any other child did.

As the bus stopped Sasuke quickly got his things and thanked the bus driver again, immediately after getting off the bus he was met by some energetic J-pop music coming from the speakers in the depot and from the look on Rei's face she enjoyed it, she even danced a little gaining a few Aww's from passerby's.

As Sasuke and Rei were about to get on the bus the song stopped and Sasuke overheard on the speaker "and that was a remix of Gimmick game performed by Yama & Nami" Rei seemed to let this sink into her childish mind, obviously the group had just gained a new fan.

Sasuke's plan worked, the bus driver just couldn't decline the two, Sasuke even showed the suitcase and whispered that he was kicked out and needs to go to his parents, the bus driver took pity on them, and though Sasuke didn't like it, he was glad that the bus driver let them on.

The drive didn't take long, the time was now 12:30, he still had hours of daylight left to convince Naruto for help, once off the bus Rei and Sasuke walked to where Naruto lived after leaving high school, he'd only been there once, but he remembered where it was.

After a ten minute walk they arrived in front of a normal sized western styled house, Sasuke without hesitation walked to the front door and rang the bell. It didn't take long for someone to arrive at the door, and just like Sasuke hoped, one of Naruto's parents appeared at the door; well it certainly looked like one of them anyways.

"Can I help you?" asked the red haired woman at the door, she looked confused as to who the visitor was, not that it surprised him in any way, last time they met he was a teenager, she never liked him back then, he just hoped she'd changed her view of him slightly.

"Oh sorry" Sasuke started gaining a look of expectation from the woman, "you may not remember me, but I'm Sasuke Uchiha, I was wondering if you could tell me where I could locate Naruto?" the woman looked shocked for a few seconds until *slam* the door was shut on his face.

Sasuke sighed, he was expecting something like this to happen, once again he rang the doorbell, gaining a "Go home!" from the woman, but Sasuke didn't give up, he rang again.

"Could you please just listen to me for a moment before you slam the door on me and my daughter?" Sasuke said with a small grin on his face.

"Daughter?" the woman asked curiously, and at that moment she opened the door and looked down to see Rei hugging Sasuke's leg, this seemed to calm her slightly, Sasuke could swear the woman whispered, "she's so cute" but ignored it for the time being.

"Yes daughter" Sasuke confirmed before kneeling down to Rei, "act cute Rei" Sasuke whispered into the girls ear, gaining a "I'm always cute" back from her making Sasuke laugh, this action made Sasuke seem as if he'd changed slightly since he was a teenager, at least in Kushina's eyes that is, since she always saw him as the boy who never smiled.

"What's her name?" Sasuke heard Kushina ask, Sasuke smiled and introduced his daughter as Rei, and he then told Rei that the woman was called Kushina, his friend's mother.

"Hi" the little girl said to Kushina, waving her hand at her, gaining a small little wave back from the woman.

"Now that the introductions are complete, could you please just listen before you slam the door in my face please?" Sasuke asked, Kushina sighed reluctantly and invited the two in, "thank you" Sasuke replied as he stepped into the house with Rei.

"Remove your shoes at the door" the woman ordered in a strict tone, _"just like when Naruto and I were younger, so strict" _Sasuke thought, but kept the thought to himself and removed his shoes as he was asked, he then helped Rei to remove her own shoes.

"So who's her mother?" Kushina asked, and Sasuke went silent, Kushina went quiet and said "It doesn't matter" understanding Sasuke's silence.

"It was Sakura" Sasuke replied, causing Kushina to gasp, she pretty much had guessed Sakura's fate by now.

"I'm so sorry" Kushina whispered slightly, causing Rei to tilt her head in confusion, she'd never known her mother's first name and she didn't hear Kushina ask the question, so she was feeling rather confused.

"What's the matter daddy" the little girl asked Sasuke who just shook his head saying nothing was wrong, causing Kushina to look at the two with a look of pity, Sasuke was used to it by now, he had to gain pity from two bus drivers today and it was getting irritating, but it wasn't something he could avoid.

"I guess you want to tell Naru the news?" Kushina asked misunderstanding the situation, Sasuke decided to roll with it. He really didn't want to say that he was begging her son for help, so he just nodded and agreed.

"Yeah, I think it'd be best if I told him myself" this caused Kushina to gasp again, confusing Sasuke, but he just ignored it. "So do you know where I can find him?" Sasuke asked again, this time Kushina looked away.

"H-he's a little different now you know" Kushina stuttered, Sasuke was expecting him to be different so he didn't mind, of course he didn't understand how different Naruto had become.

"That was bound to happen" Sasuke said in a all-knowing voice, "everyone changes, but he'll still be my friend despite how much he has changed" Kushina felt sort of happy hearing that, thinking that Sasuke already knew what she meant by changed.

"You still refer to Naru in the same way, even upon knowing this?" Kushina asked, and Sasuke nodded.

"Of course I would, we will always be friends" Sasuke declared, Kushina feeling slightly touched by the young man's attitude wrote down Naru's address for him.

"Naru lives out in the city now and has become rather famous, I'm sure you'll be surprised when you find out for yourself, Naru has been using a stage name after all" and at that she handed Sasuke a piece of paper.

"Thank you Mrs. Namikaze" Sasuke replied and bowed, before looking down at his daughter who was looking rather tired. "Now I know I may sound rude to ask this, but could you look after Rei for a bit, whilst I deliver the news, I don't want her to be there you know?" Sasuke asked, and Kushina agreed, feeling sympathetic towards the young man.

"Rei stay here for a bit, Daddy's going to go see his friend, whilst I'm gone be well behaved around Mrs. Namikaze okay?" Sasuke asked his daughter, who shook her head happily; in return Sasuke ruffled her hair slightly and kissed her forehead.

"Bye Daddy!" the little girl said energetically as he walked out.

"Bye, and remember behave" he said jokingly and closed the door and walked off, when he was sure that no-one could hear him he sighed. "Sorry Sakura, I didn't mean to use your death like that, but it's for Rei, you understand right?" he asked, he never got an answer, but he was sure she'd be okay with it.

* * *

After another bus ride, Sasuke arrived in the city centre, it was around 2pm, and he guessed he'd take about two and half hours to get to the apartment, walking around the city took hours and using a cab was worse, especially with the terrible traffic inside the city.

"_Kushina said famous right?" _Sasuke thought curiously as he walked around town, occasionally asking people for directions, it didn't take long until he found someone useful, they explained that it would take three hours by foot, but around four to five hours by public transport, especially at this time of day, this caused Sasuke to sigh, but he put up with it, he had to, Naruto was his last chance.

As the man explained, it really did take him three hours, it was now about 5pm, it wasn't dark yet but the sun was starting to drop. Sasuke was stunned when he reached the apartment complex, it was huge, but strangely enough it didn't have a receptionist or anything, he wondered if it was safe living in a place where people could just come and go.

At that moment he decided to get to the elevator but it wouldn't open, apparently it needed a finger print to open, this was frustrating, so instead Sasuke waited for a few minutes and luckily the door pinged open, Sasuke taking advantage of this walked in and pretended it was natural and he was meant to be there.

In the elevator were two other people, one was wearing a business suit and had a lazy expression, the other was a woman with dirty blonde hair, visibly huge breasts, not that Sasuke was looking or anything.

"Troublesome" he heard the man mutter and the woman jabbed him to be quiet, and then Sasuke pressed the button for the sixth floor, it was lucky because the inside didn't have finger print scans. _"Thank god" _Sasuke thought and after a relatively short elevator trip Sasuke arrived on the sixth floor.

Sasuke was instantly met by a well presented hallway, much cleaner than the hallway outside the apartment he lived in, Sasuke whistled, visibly impressed with the layout. After a quick stroll he realised that there weren't many rooms in this place, he guessed the apartments had to be pretty huge.

Not long after arriving on the sixth floor he reached the apartment door which read 6 – 2, he guessed it meant floor six room two, he then pressed the doorbell, not knowing that this was going to end up as one of the most confusing situations he'd ever faced in his entire life.

* * *

(End Chapter)

Ok chapter two has been completed, phew that was hard (referring to having to write Kushina's lines without referring to Naru's gender).

This chapter had two purposes, to lead to the changing of Sasuke's life which meant build up of both Father and Daughter relationship and also to show that even though Sasuke shouted at Rei last chapter, he really is a good father, the first part focusing on how much he dedicates his life to making Rei's liveable.

Now I wrote this so fast because all of you lovely readers & reviewers, hearing the happy readers' reviews inspired me to write faster, so like I said before the start of the chapter, this one is for all of you, I hope you enjoyed it.

Next chapter the story finally starts and it reveals Naru's secret, also I hinted to what Naru is famous for during the chapter, it may be disguised but you'll find out soon enough.

Reviews would be appreciated, but what's more important is enjoying the story.

**-Aquilon**


	3. Are you Naruto?

**Chapter three of Lean on Me**

Ah what can I say, I just love writing this fiction, and I love each and every one of you. The readers ^_^ and especially the reviewers lol.

Let's see hmm, what is Naru? Well you'll find out soon, will she help Sasuke and Rei? Who knows, well that's enough of the vague questioning, now onto the story!

I hope you enjoy it.

**Are you Naruto?**

After pressing the doorbell Sasuke stood expectantly outside the door, what he was expecting to see was an overly energetic, blonde hair, blue eyed man, yet this wasn't what he received when the door finally opened.

In front of him was a rather petite red haired woman with blue eyes, something about her seemed so familiar to him, and then it hit him, he'd seen this woman before the time Sasuke went to visit Naruto after he moved, the woman at the time referred to herself as Naruto's cousin, but this was obviously not the case. _"Sneaky little bastard, hiding a girlfriend from me was he?" _Sasuke thought humorously, ignoring the woman who had just spoke.

Whilst Sasuke lost himself in his own misunderstandings, the woman slowly got rather irritated. "Well if you're not even going to introduce yourself I'll just close the door!" the woman shouted angrily, catching the raven haired man's attention.

Sasuke now feeling rather embarrassed turned slightly red, feeling stupid for just standing gormlessly in front of the young woman. "S-sorry" Sasuke apologised before clearing his throat. "I'm not sure if you remember me, but we met around eight years ago, you're Naruto's 'cousin' right?" Sasuke asked politely, for now he'd play along with the little lie she made eight years ago.

"Shit" the woman whispered quickly, Sasuke raised an eyebrow in confusion, the woman in response to this just smiled at him, trying to keep her composure. "Sorry my memories a little…. Hazy, I don't think we've met before" the woman lied as she directed her eyes away from the handsome man, finding the floor a much more 'favourable' sight.

Sasuke merely laughed slightly, _"of course she wouldn't remember me, we only met once, how vain can I be?" _Sasuke thought, still misunderstanding the situation. "Then I'll introduce myself again to you, I'm Sasuke Uchiha an old friend of your 'cousin' I was wondering if you knew where to find Naruto?" Sasuke asked, in the most gentlemanly way possible, after all it usually yielded the best results in the end.

The moment Sasuke mentioned his name the woman winced, this was bad, she'd need to try and steer him away, it'd be too embarrassing for her if Sasuke of all people found out. "I'm sorry Naruto's not in right now" the woman started "would you like me to give him a message?" she asked, sounding completely genuine in her request.

Sasuke went silent for a second before sighing and looking at the woman 'sadly' "I'm sorry but there is something I'd like to speak to him about personally, would you mind if I waited for him to get back?" Sasuke asked causing the woman to flinch slightly.

As the woman looked up at the raven haired man she suddenly felt very guilty, after all Sasuke was always good at convincing 'her' into doing anything, this wasn't good, she knew he wouldn't leave without a very good reason.

"Umm, well…. He won't be umm home today so waiting is out of the question" the woman replied, sounding rather unconvincing to Sasuke, this made him feel awfully suspicious about what was going on.

"_Why is she being so difficult?" _he thought in confusion as he stared into her blue eyes, at that moment he noticed her cheeks starting to turn red. _"Hmm wonder why she's going red?" _Sasuke thought, feeling rather curious, at this moment he looked down on the form of the woman, noticing that she wasn't fully in view, rather only the upper half of her body was covered, and then he got a stupid idea.

"Could it be that" Sasuke started before smiling slyly, "Naruto is here right now?" he queried, causing the woman to gasp, this made Sasuke believe his theory was correct. _"Geez Naruto the time I finally come over your doing inappropriate things whilst it's not even dark?" _he thought to himself, completely missing the true reason why 'Naruto' wasn't here by miles.

Sasuke laughed slightly and the woman thought, for some reason, that the man standing in front of her had solved the secret regarding Naruto. "I-it's not what you think, I-I didn't mean to lie, a-all of those y-years a-go" the woman stuttered, causing Sasuke to laugh.

"Ah no worries, I was rather suspicious about you being his 'cousin' anyways" Sasuke offered her some help. "I mean it's obvious, Naruto is still in there right?" the woman nodded, thinking Sasuke meant, that despite the physical difference, 'Naruto' was still here, yup now even she was misunderstanding things.

"OI NARUTO GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE, YOUR CUTE LITTLE 'COUSIN' IS GETTING EMBARRASED OUT HERE!" Sasuke shouted jokingly, this caused the woman in front of him to kick him in the shins.

"Shh don't shout like that!" the woman scolded, she couldn't have people hearing her real name, it wouldn't be hard to put two and two together.

"Hey why'd you kick me?" Sasuke asked angrily, the woman not allowing Sasuke to make any more noise grabbed him and tried to pull him into the apartment, before she realised she didn't have the strength to do so, Sasuke noticing this walked into the apartment, guessing she didn't mind him inside the apartment, she then quickly shut the door.

"Why the hell are you shouting so loud in the corridor!" the woman hissed, slightly unnerving Sasuke, who now got a full view of her body, he then became rather confused, she wasn't partially clothed, so was he misunderstanding things?

"S-sorry I just assumed that you and Naruto were up to some umm…. Bedroom business and I unfortunately interrupted something" Sasuke replied in an unnaturally calm voice.

"Why would you think that?" the woman asked, eye twitching slightly, did she just reveal her secret to him just to realise that he was misunderstanding the situation?

"Well why else would you try and push me away so desperately? What other reason could you have?" Sasuke replied, he was now getting serious, he wasn't going to let this go easily, something was suspicious about this whole situation.

"Umm" the woman started "maybe I didn't want someone suspicious around Naruto" the woman muttered pitifully, it was a blatant lie and even Sasuke knew this.

"Could you be a bit more creative next time you lie to me?" Sasuke asked in a cocky manner, he didn't know why but he felt strangely at ease around this person who was relatively a stranger to him, it was strange because he wasn't forward with strangers usually.

"W-who say's I'm lying?" the woman shot back.

"Well throughout this conversation all you've done is lie, what makes you think I'll believe what you say now?" Sasuke asked, and to be honest, it did sound logical.

The woman was completely stumped, just like when they were teenagers; she still couldn't win, never with words, never at anything else, Naru had lost once again to Sasuke, at least he didn't call her what he always used to when they were younger.

"Geez you're as bad as lying as the Dobe" Sasuke muttered, sounding rather bored now, however that one word was the last straw for Naru.

"Oh yeah at least I'm not an asshole Teme!" Naru shouted back, completely forgetting that she had to not act like 'Naruto' at all, "Shit!" she screamed angrily, whilst at the same time Sasuke stared at her, slightly in a daze.

"_Only one person has ever referred to me as Teme… that was the nickname Naruto gave me in high school, but how would this girl know?" _Sasuke was now confused, and Naru was very, very worried, if Sasuke just used his head, he'd realise everything.

"Oi how do you know that nickname?" Sasuke asked in a suspicious tone, "for someone who claimed to not know me, you seem to know my 'nickname' could you explain that to me, because only one person knows of that and it's Naruto!" Sasuke continued, sounding rather angry for some reason.

"N-N-Naruto called you it once when I was around, I must have remembered it somehow" Naru stuttered lamely, stepping back slightly, this wasn't looking good; Sasuke was the one person she didn't want looking down on her.

"Sorry, that isn't going to work" Sasuke said with an arrogant smile on his face, "You and Naruto have never been in the same room with me at the same time, so I know you just lied to me, explain" Sasuke ordered, he was through with being calm, was this woman purposefully trying to keep him from Naruto?

"Umm, umm" Naru stuttered as she stepped backwards a little more, but the Sasuke threw his hand forward and caught her wrist.

"Don't think you can just run from me, why don't you explain yourself, I have no time for this, if I don't speak with Naruto soon, my daughter and I could end up on the streets!" Sasuke shouted angrily, causing the woman to quiver slightly.

"S-st-streets?" Naru stuttered, "why would not talking to Naruto put you on the streets?" the woman asked now she was confused as well.

"Let's just say Naruto is the last person I can turn to" Sasuke said in a serious tone, this made the woman start remembering a conversation she had on the phone last night.

"It can't be" she whispered, but loud enough for Sasuke to hear.

"Hm, what can't be?" Sasuke asked, still gripping her wrist.

Naru stood there contemplating what she should say, but then she decided to just go with it, she was losing and he was bound to find out at this rate. "Do you have a daughter named Rei?" Naru asked in a quiet voice, but the words were strong enough to cause Sasuke to let go of her wrist, mainly from confusion.

"How do you know that?" Sasuke asked, his eyes suddenly became sharp looking, this and the mixture of shock from hearing Sasuke's answer caused her to gasp.

"Last night I received a call, the caller's name was Sasuke, and he was on the verge of killing himself" Naru started, suddenly she held all the cards. "The man was going to kill himself whilst his daughter was in the house, the daughter saw him and what do you think the man did?" Naru asked, waiting for an answer, but the man made a guilty looking face.

"Yes that man shouted at his concerned daughter, he then talked about how if he died everything would be better for everyone, funny right, that same man is standing right in front of me right now, kind of poetic don't you think?" Naru asked, having enough of all the crap, at this rate Sasuke had no right to look down on her.

"You're Naru, the girl from suicide hotline? Why would you be in Naruto's apartment" Sasuke started, and then it hit him. "Naru and Naruto are very similar names don't you think?" Sasuke said out loud, as if he finally understood.

"Indeed, too familiar don't ya think?" Naru replied sarcastically, she then grinned in the exact way that Naruto used to when they were only teenagers "kind of suspicious don't you think?" she asked as Sasuke's face contorted from shock to horror to some other unreadable emotions.

"You… you have got to be kidding me right?" Sasuke asked with wide eyes, this couldn't be possible, no way, this really couldn't be true could it, for some reason everything started to get a little blurry, as Naru just smiled at him.

* * *

At the exact same time Kushina was at her home, and had somehow been dragged into playing hide and seek with Rei, and for some reason, the girl was unnaturally good at hiding, it was as if she had disappeared into thin air.

"Rei where arrre you" the middle aged beauty asked, feeling rather worried now, it had been around twenty minutes and she still couldn't find the infant, there was no way that a little child could be so good at hiding, could there?

"Kushina I'm home!" shouted Minato as he walked through the door to see Kushina crawling across the floor searching for something. "Umm honey, I'm afraid to ask, but why are you on your knees?" Minato asked in a wary voice, to get a glare in return.

"Don't even try to make jokes, I've lost her Minato!" Kushina randomly blurted out confusing the blonde haired man.

"Lost…. Her?" Minato asked as he walked over to the woman.

"Rei" Kushina said quickly as she opened the recliner of the sofa and looked inside of it.

Once again Minato was left confused as to what the hell his wife meant, "Honey didn't I tell you to stop taking those pills, you know they make you all umm confused" he said trying to not mock his wife, because he was bound to get hurt if he did.

"Haha Minato, I bet you think you're soo funny, but this time it's true, there's a little girl called Rei inside this house and I've lost her" Kushina replied angrily, yet Minato still wasn't convinced.

"Kushina, honey, little girls don't appear out of thin air" Minato reasoned, in return he got a kick to the gut.

"If you must know I'm looking after her for someone" Kushina replied angrily as Minato lay on the floor feeling rather winded.

"Tell me that sooner next time, it'll save you time and it'll save me a few beatings" Minato whinged as he gasped for air.

"Oh don't act like you don't enjoy it" Kushina taunted her husband, she then stood up off the floor and decided to look somewhere else for the little girl, at the same time Minato got to his feet.

"Kushina, I have a question for you" Minato shouted out loudly, catching her attention from the other room, "Who exactly are you looking after this child for? None of our friends have small children after all" Minato reasoned, and then all of a sudden Kushina went completely silent meaning it was something Minato probably wouldn't want to know.

"Umm about that, how about I just keep that secret for you" Kushina offered after all Minato disliked Sasuke more than she did, so she doubted he would react well.

"Kushina, who is it?" Minato asked again, this time a little more forcefully.

"Sasuke Uchiha" Kushina said rather quietly, but Minato heard it loud and clear and it wasn't something he liked hearing either.

"What! Why would you look after his child for him?" Minato asked feeling rather annoyed, "that child was always a good for nothing anyway, always getting Naru into trouble!" Minato said angrily, and at that moment he felt something hit him in the side.

"Don't talk about Daddy that way!" shouted a little girl, Minato turned around to see Rei looking up at him with an 'angry' face, which looked more like the mixture of puppy dog eyes and a pout.

"Oh thank god you're alright Rei" Kushina said happily, but the little girl just ignored her and continued staring at her husband 'angrily.'

As the little girl stared at Minato angrily he decided to give her his own 'angry' look, but he couldn't do it the little girl was too cute, before he knew it he was nearly, 'aww-ing' at her.

Minato then turned around with an unreadable look on his face, directed towards Kushina. "Can we keep her?" Minato joked, causing Kushina to nearly agree, before she gave him a strict no.

This is how Rei became an always welcomed guest at the Namikaze Household.

* * *

"You… you have got to be kidding me right?" Sasuke stuttered slightly causing Naru to smile slyly at him.

"Oh I'm sorry, let me introduce myself again" Naru started, they were the same now, both of them had no right to look down on each other, this gave Naru the courage to do what she was about to do. "I'm Naru Namikaze, but you know me as Naruto Namikaze, nice to meet you Sasuke" and with that everything went black and Sasuke hit the floor.

"For some reason that wasn't the reaction I was expecting" Naru joked as she looked at the unconscious form of her childhood friend.

* * *

(End of Chapter)

Hmm I decided to split the Revealing to Sasuke and the Reaction to the information, it'll continue next chapter, meanwhile I wanted to show some Kushina and Minato and also some of little Rei.

Reason's for the fainting, hmm, let's see, Sasuke has just thought of Naruto as his last life line and now he realises he's a complete different person (physically at least or to him physically at least I'll let you think about that one) so he's kinda lost hope again, let's see how he acts towards Naru now, maybe it'll be a little comical who knows.

Shockingly enough this didn't take me long to write, in fact I spent nearly all day on the Wii today playing Gamecube Games, It only took me a few hours to write this chapter I hope you enjoyed it!

Reviews would be appreciated, but what's more important is enjoying the story :)

**-Aquilon**


	4. What are you?

**Lean on Me chapter four**

Wow, I'm on chapter four now, I haven't hit that many chapters in a long time (since I started fanfiction on my other account.)

This fiction is only getting started, I have a lot of ideas and I hope all of you lovely readers will continue to enjoy the story, once again a big thank you to you lovely reviewers ^_^ and I hope you continue to support me by reading.

How will the conversation between Naru and Sasuke go? And what really is Naru, a crossdresser, was he always a girl? Hmm I'm not sure if that is going to be revealed yet, it depends how I feel whilst writing this chapter.

**What are you?**

Sasuke opened his eyes to find himself staring up at the ceiling, it was much different from the slightly coloured ceiling he was used to in his old apartment, instead it was bright white in colour holding no marks of dampness where water had seeped through, he even noticed a few engravings once he focused his vision a little more.

"_Where the hell am I?" _Sasuke asked himself, but a clear answer wouldn't form, whatever happened seemed to have made him temporarily forget how he got there. After lying on the ground for awhile he decided to get up, there's no point in just laying on the floor for no reason is there.

As Sasuke got to his feet he realised how rich the owner of this place must have been, I mean a good indication was the expensive coats he saw hanging on the coat stand, he doubted he'd be able to afford even one of them without sacrificing meals for a month, maybe it was an exaggeration, but at the time it really seemed that way to Sasuke.

Deciding to shake off the temporary feeling of inadequacy, Sasuke walked from what he assumed to be the hallway into the main living area of the apartment, where the inadequacy factor went from feeling a little put out to feeling completely inferior to whoever owned the apartment.

Turning to his right Sasuke got a clear view of what indeed was the living room, the first thing that caught his eyes was of course the 50' widescreen plasma television which hung from the wall directly above an expensive looking fireplace which was composed of beautifully crafted rocks which were primarily white yet had a brownish tinge to them, the base of the fireplace was black marble, and in the centre of it were the flames, upon observation he realised they were in fact artificial.

To the sides of the fireplace was two cabinets, these were rather thin and were coloured a dark mahogany, resting upon the top of these cabinets were flowers, both held in exquisite vases.

It didn't stop there, the area around the television was also something that caught Sasuke's eye, from where he stood he could see a light brown leather sofa and two lounge chairs with a similar colour scheme, the sofa was directly in line with the television, whilst the two lounge chairs sat facing each other, in between these three pieces of furniture was a low coffee table which was primarily wood but in the centre it seemed to be glass.

Directly behind the furthest lounge chair which facing towards him was a grand piano which was primarily black in colour, it seemed to sheen and reflect a white light, presumably from being so well kept, the reason the piano was visible from his position was because the piano was on top of an elevated solid wooden platform.

Similar to how the fireplace has two cabinets next to it, the piano had something similar to some perspective, to both sides of it was two large plant pots, and from what Sasuke saw, it seemed the owner of said plant was trying to grow a tree or something.

Directly behind the piano was large dark red curtains, which were pulled, leaving Sasuke to feel rather curious as to what was behind them, the curtains went well with the cream coloured carpet and the large red and cream rug, Sasuke momentarily felt the urge to remove his shoes to test out the feel but opted against it.

Sasuke then turned to his left, now facing the same position he had been when he entered the room, directly in front of him on the other side of the room was a door, from where he stood he could also see another door, this was to the right of the door in front of him, in the gap between the two doors was a long cabinet, which was similar to those beside the fireplace except much longer and slightly thicker.

Yet instead of flowers being rested on top of them there was a few picture frames and a lamp, Sasuke from where he stood couldn't make out anyone in the pictures, above the cabinet, hanging on the wall in a picture frame was a gold coloured disk above some plaque with writing he couldn't make out from his distance.

"_Holy shit, a gold record" _was Sasuke's first thoughts at the sight, his eyes were wide, when some words floated into his mind, _"Naru lives in the city now and has become rather famous" _Sasuke remembered Kushina telling him. _"This can't be the Dobe's place besides why would I be unconscious on his floor if it was, why was I unconscious on the floor anyway?" _Sasuke asked himself but he still couldn't formulate an answer in his mind.

Sasuke turned to his right again and noticed a door on the far side of the room, connected to the same wall that the television hung from, this door was different from the mahogany coloured doors on the opposite side of the room, this one was a light brown and lacked any sort of handle.

Sasuke then directed his vision to the ceiling again to discover a large fan; each blade was a dark mahogany on the outer edges whilst the inner part was a lighter brown, in the centre was a spherical shaped bulb covered by a lampshade which looked similar to a chandelier in appearance, this hung from the centre of the room.

In each corner of the room was a stereo speaker, yet there was no stereo in sight, this confused Sasuke yet he didn't dwell on it, maybe it was hidden or something he reasoned.

In general the room had a nice feel to it, the high class items did nothing to retract it from feeling rather cosy, the wall's were coloured a prominent cream colour with a reddish brown boarder between the ceiling and the walls, the same boarder existed between the floor and the wall as well.

There wasn't any lack of light in the room, upon closer inspection of the television area, Sasuke saw a small, nearly unnoticeable stand which was between the sofa and the closest lounge chair, on top of it was a small lamp, there were also a few wall lamps which had a brown base, finally to cap it off there was a large light stand directly in furthermost corners of the room.

The combination of lights allowed the room to be well illuminated yet rather soft in appearance, neither light was too bright, nor too dim, Sasuke also noted that the main light on the ceiling was switched off.

"If this is just the living room then I wonder what the rest of this place looks like" Sasuke muttered and from the sound of it, he was feeling rather jealous towards whoever owned this place, that's another thing that got him curious, where was the owner anyway, it's not like people just leave their 'guests' passed out in the hallway, unless times had changed since Sasuke was last awake.

Feeling adventurous Sasuke walked over to where he spied the gold record, feeling rather nosey, at the same time rather curious, he wanted to know whose apartment he was in, an easy way to figure that out would be to read the plaque below the album.

"Hm let's see here" Sasuke murmured looking up at the plaque which read 'Yama and Nami of Hyuuga Records' next to this was a small picture of the group that Sasuke had failed to miss, one of the women had long red hair and blue eyes at the sight of the woman some images flashed into his mind, the second woman had long platinum hair in a tail and pale green eyes, both of them were doing 'peace' signs with their fingers, they seemed very happy.

"Yama and Nami where have I heard that name before hmm" Sasuke murmured, then something clicked, he remembered hearing them this morning at the bus depot, Rei seemed to like them, but anything passed that time was a blur, as if his mind was trying to forcefully hide something from him, something that would be near mentally scarring.

After he'd stared at the shiny golden album for a few moments he looked down to the cabinet below it, on top of it was a couple of pictures, though this was a stupid mistake because it ended up revealing everything to him, the first picture was a of a grown man, he had blonde spiky hair and blue eyes, Sasuke recognised this man, it was Naruto's father.

"_Hmmm, that's strange" _Sasuke thought curiosly, his eyes then drifted to a picture of a woman with long red hair and violet eyes, her hair was similar to that of the woman in the photo of Yami and Nam he'd just seen.

The next picture was of Minato, Kushina and the woman he saw in the picture of Yami and Nami, it seemed like a family picture, yup it was starting to all click into place, as more images appeared in his mind, this time of a red haired woman giving him a sly smile. _"I really don't like where this is going" _Sasuke thought to himself.

The final picture verified his fears, in the picture was a small blonde boy, he hadn't hit puberty yet and had blue eyes, his hair was slightly spiky and he was grinning like an idiot, this isn't what was the defining evidence, it was the fact that directly behind him in the picture was himself wearing a straight face also known as his version of smiling at age 12 and directly next to him was a girl with long pink hair and emerald eyes, the sight of her nearly made him tear up.

'I'm Naru Namikaze, but you know me as Naruto Namikaze, nice to meet you Sasuke' the man heard in his mind, the memories of early started to flow back, the whole embarrassing confrontation with the now 'Naru' who claimed to be his childhood friend Naruto, it was too hard to believe, he felt confused, there had to be some reasonable explanation, perhaps Naruto had a twin all along and they were just tricking him, after all Kushina did hate him or so he believed, so he wouldn't put it passed her to send him to the wrong apartment.

Yet this didn't make any sense, because if that was true Naruto would have been in the family picture of the red haired girl, Minato and Kushina, also the picture from childhood wouldn't have been there.

All of a sudden Sasuke began to chuckle slightly, he had no idea what was so funny or why he was compelled to laugh but he couldn't help himself, for some reason he felt as if he'd just gone insane, if anyone was watching him at the time they'd probably agree with this thought.

It felt so weird, the person who had talked him out of killing himself, the person who had convinced him to turn to his last lifeline, was the same lifeline except this time it came in a different gender and by the looks of it from the pictures, seemed to fit too well into the gender role, it's as if the woman had planned it out from the start.

"_Great, fucking great, if I ask her… I mean Naruto for help she'll….I mean he'll probably think I'm trying to get into… his house or something just to get closer to…. Her I mean him, Oh god this is so confusing!" _Sasuke thought angrily, for some reason he assumed that Naruto being a different gender meant the chances he'd… she'd… no he'd help him was lower, when to be honest the chances were low in the first place, I mean not many people are generous enough to help a homeless guy like that.

At that moment Sasuke heard the sound of water splashing, Sasuke with a clouded mind, walked through the door to the left of him to try and locate the maker of said noise, just to enter a bedroom, it seemed rather unused, it must have been the guest room or something, then a louder splash came, Sasuke feeling curious walked forward and opened the door at the other side of the room to be met with a thick veil of steam.

The room he had entered was obviously a bathroom but it was way too large to be an ordinary bathroom, it looked like a Japanese public bath in terms of size, it was as if Naru…to had managed to drag a hotspring into her…his apartment.

Apparently Naruto hadn't heard him enter the bathroom and for some strange reason, Sasuke felt compelled to find out once and for all, what the hell was Naruto, was he… she or whatever, it lying to him or did 'it' really become a girl, or was it always a girl? Oh screw it he didn't care right now, he just wanted to find out.

Sneakily Sasuke crept forward making sure to make no noise, he scanned the bathroom the best he could for the amount of steam that was blocking his vision, the search came up empty, the steam was too thick so Sasuke couldn't find the girl… boy… thing, in his mind it didn't have a designated gender… for now anyway.

He then heard some splashing, and moved in the general direction that it came from. _"Why am I doing something so stupid?" _he asked himself but he ignored the voice, it wasn't stupid, there was a reason behind it, he needed to find out the truth about his friend, even if it meant being treated like a pervert for an unspecified amount of time.

As she snuck over he started to find out that the bathroom tiles were getting more and more slippery as he moved, if he wasn't careful he was going to fall head first into the water, now he didn't mind peeking at 'it' from a distance for now, but being discovered was a completely different matter.

Sasuke after a lot of difficulty finally reached his destination, through the veil of steam he noticed a clear feminine shape, _"feminine shape…. Check" _Sasuke thought, he then moved backwards and hid behind an ornamental rock like you'd find in hot springs, he still had to wonder how the hell one of these things were inside an apartment.

Looking forward he still couldn't get a clear view, so he snuck a little bit closer, from this distance he noticed the clear shape of breasts, _"at the very minimum I'd say Dickgirl" _then just as he thought that the 'woman' turned around and Sasuke with his brilliant reflexes threw himself behind the rock, sensing 'danger' the adrenaline which had convinced him to even contemplate looking at Naru had run out, and he found himself sneaking out of the bathroom, once he got out he quickly removed his shoes and picked them up, then without a second thought he ran to where he'd woken up and threw his shoes on the floor.

"Now I'll pretend I just woke up when Naru…to appears" Sasuke whispered to himself, smirking at how smart it seemed, Naruto wouldn't have any idea of what he just did, and to be honest he really wasn't proud of his actions, thinking clearly about what he did made him realise that he may have potentially checked out a man in the bath… awkward.

After waiting for what he assumed to be ten minutes, someone walked into the living room; Sasuke then murmured slightly and got up rubbing the back of his head, "w-where am I?" Sasuke groaned.

"My apartment, don't you remember fainting like a little girl" a feminine voice replied, Sasuke then turned his head to see the woman dressed in only a towel, which barely covered her breasts and only a small fraction of her legs. _"What the hell was the point in peeking" _Sasuke thought before putting on a fake expression of embarrassment.

"W-w-what are you w-wearing!" Sasuke wailed in a fake voice of shock, but the sly smile on Naru's face made him realise something was up.

"Just a towel, what's wrong, getting excited around a 'man' are you?" Naru asked in a sarcastic voice.

"So you are a guy!" Sasuke blurted out quickly.

"Well, you could say that, I suppose" Naru replied, feeling strangely confident around the man, only a few hours earlier she could barely stand the mere notion of him finding out about her, now for some reason she thought he had no right to judge her in the slightest, it may also have been down to something she'd drank after panicking that Sasuke knew about her, but it didn't matter.

Sasuke gave a confused look and Naru walked across the living room slowly, swaying her hips slightly, just to confuse Sasuke even further, she then sat on one of the lounge chairs. "So Sasuke like what you see?" Naru asked the man curiously, maybe she was hoping for the opposite answer of what she was going to receive, but she felt like teasing him.

"Why would I like a chick with a dick?" Sasuke replied, completely forgetting the reason why he had originally come to Naru's apartment.

Naru just laughed at Sasuke's comment, how dense could he be, or maybe he just wanted to deny what she was. "I assure you I am not a chick with a dick" besides I'm sure you saw enough of me in the bathroom to realise that I'm not one, you grew up to be quite the pervert didn't you." Naru replied before laughing again this time she was nearly in hysterics, to Sasuke the woman seemed to be acting differently from earlier as if something had made her begin to act differently.

"_Could Naru..to be drunk right now?" _Sasuke wondered, because from the way it looked, it seemed that way, and then it hit him. "You knew I was looking?" he asked, not feeling ashamed of his actions, well he wasn't showing it anyway.

"Well you'd certainly not make it as a ninja that's for sure" Naru replied before laughing again, yup Naru was drunk.

"Yeah, yeah whatever" Sasuke replied, figuring he should just agree with the drunk woman… for now.

"SOO…." Naru started on a different conversation, "why are you here Sasuke?" Naru asked curiously, the words were slightly slurred, but they held some form of seriousness to them, perhaps he could use her being drunk to his advantage.

Sasuke smiled confidently before speaking, "As much as I would like to find out about what you really are" Sasuke started and the woman raised her eyebrow signalling for Sasuke to continue. "I need your help Naru, could you listen to my request?"

* * *

(End Chapter)

Ah another chapter where we don't find out what Naru really is but I slimmed down the options, she definitely isn't a crossdressing boy.

Ok a little information, after Sasuke passed out Naru feeling slightly stressed that she told Sasuke her secret (she is slightly insecure about it even if she felt as if he had no right to judge her) went and took some alcohol from her little 'stash' because she got drunk she completely forgot about Sasuke and went to have a bath, so if she hadn't of caught Sasuke peeping, she probably wouldn't have even known he was there.

I have drawn a bird's eye view of the apartment which I will post soon, the image link will be on my profile when I get around to it, I decided to make the chapter slightly comical, even if it wasn't to you.

I hope you are enjoying the fiction, because I love writing it so much and it's nice to hear that my work is appreciated by the readers.

Reviews would be appreciated, but what's more important is enjoying the story :)

**-Aquilon**


	5. I need your help

**Lean on Me chapter five**

Ah chapter five, maybe we can finally get to know Naru's true circumstances, hm perhaps we may, once again I'd like to thank all the reviewers and readers, your continuing support helps to write, though when you review could you perhaps tell me what you enjoyed? I'm not trying to be selfish, just practical to improve my own writing.

What is Naru though? Certainly not a crossdressing boy right? Was Naru always hiding her gender? Ohh I wonder, let's see how the conversation goes between these two 'best friends' through Sasuke's scepticism and Naru being drunk will anything get solved?

Well please enjoy ^_^

**I need your help**

"I need your help Naru, could you listen to my request?" Sasuke asked, feeling confident that he could convince the now drunk 'woman' to assist him. As he asked this Naru crossed one leg over the other as she pulled a lever on the lounge chair, tilting it backwards slightly to get more comfortable.

"Hmm" the red haired beauty hummed as she brought her hand to her chin, assuming a 'thinking' pose, then after a moment of silence she removed her hand and donned a small smile "no" she replied flatly, her voice not wavering an inch which both surprised and worried the black haired man.

"Why? I haven't even told you anything yet, how can you be so cold!" Sasuke asked in a panicked tone before allowing anger to slip into his voice, he couldn't believe that this person was Naruto, both for the fact that Naruto was a boy (in his mind) and the fact that Naruto would have helped anyone, how could someone like this witch possibly be Naruto? He wondered curiously.

"That's exactly the reason why" Naru replied in a slightly slurred voice, "if I let you tell me what you need, I may feel obligated to help you" she continued in a serious tone, Sasuke started to have doubts that she was drunk, but held the thoughts to himself. "Anyway how could I help you any more than I have, I did stop you from killing yourself after all" Naru continued sounding quite haughty.

"You saved my life by making me turn to you, just to turn me away, if anything you've just increased the chances of me going through with it" Sasuke replied in a deep voice, he needed to convince 'Naru' that if 'she' didn't help him he'd end up killing himself, it was a despicable tactic and he knew it, but he had already fallen low enough to get pity from strangers and use his wife's death as an excuse, a little suicide threat was nothing to him right now.

The woman flinched slightly at his words, maybe it was the dark seriousness about it that hit her, but she seemed to seriously consider that Sasuke was telling the truth, yet she wasn't entirely convinced. "You'd just kill yourself and leave your daughter all alone?" the woman asked, repeating what she'd asked him only last night.

Sasuke grinned at her words, he was always good at putting on an act, and that's what he was relying on. "I also told you, I am the only person who is truly alone, Rei would be taken in by my family if I died, I on the other hand, am a shame on the Uchiha name, a guy who married a 'commoner." Sasuke told the woman before chuckling slightly "if you really are Naruto you know what my parents are like right? The word elitist comes to mind right, yes Rei would become just like them, she'd get everything she wanted, so why should I care about my own life!" Sasuke finished, emphasizing the last section perfectly, making it sound as if he was a desperate person who'd given up already.

"True your parents are like that" Naru replied, sounding slightly sad when she said it, those people were the worst. It was what led Sasuke to rebel, often getting him and consequently, Naru into trouble when they were children. "Yet there is one thing you haven't considered" the woman pointed out, "why not just let Rei live with them now, wouldn't that take the burden off your shoulders?" Naru asked, sounding too wise, either she had sobered up slightly or she was never drunk in the first place, because it was too logical for a drunken person.

Sasuke feeling slightly shocked at her words didn't reply, he bit his lip and stayed quiet, knowing that his reasons would make him sound selfish. _"Rei is the last person left for me, how could I just send her away?" _Sasuke replied to her in his mind, but wouldn't speak them, it would tear down his argument if he said it.

"I mean wouldn't that be solving two problems at once, Rei will get a nice life and you wouldn't have to be burdened with taking care of her, you could then get a job with longer hours since you wouldn't need to consider Rei" Naru continued, giving various hand movements whilst doing this, these erratic movements nearly caused her towel to fall off.

Not noticing that Sasuke was slowly getting angry at her words she continued to pile on the pressure. "I mean the whole reason for your stress is Rei right?" she asked, yet Sasuke didn't interpret it as a question, it was obvious that the woman was speaking her mind, "I bet you actually want to get rid of her" she concluded and that's what sent Sasuke over the edge.

Before Naru had the chance to continue she heard the noise of shattering glass which came from the small lamp near the lounge chair opposite her, before she had a chance to react Sasuke darted across the room and slammed his hands into her shoulders hard, causing the woman and nearly the chair as well to buckle under his strength.

Sasuke's eyes were emitting a fierce, cold hatred. The strength of his emotions was enough to instantly sober up the woman who claimed to be Naruto. Her demeanour went from care free to fearful in the blink of an eye, Sasuke was really pissed off and she could tell, the anger in his expression caused her body to go numb with fear, it was the scariest thing she'd ever experienced, not only that, she knew she deserved this, which meant Sasuke wasn't even to blame.

"I would recommend you shutting the fuck up before I rearrange that pretty little face of yours" Sasuke warned, and it truly was a warning, he actually felt like doing it to her at that moment in time, but he wouldn't sink that low, not yet anyway.

The woman nodded subconsciously, she was frightened out of her wits, and all she could do was agree with the man out of fear for her safety.

Sasuke smiled slightly, it wasn't a kind smile instead it was more like a self-satisfied smile. "So you finally decided to shut up" Sasuke commented in a satisfied tone, once again Naru just nodded, she felt as if she was going to cry, but she wouldn't give Sasuke the pleasure of seeing that.

Sasuke now had complete control the situation and he knew it, the fact that she was so compliant with him made things a heck of a lot easier for him, before continuing he considered his options, maybe he could use this to his advantage whilst gaining some form of peace with the woman, even if he was severely pissed off at Rei, he wouldn't send her to his parents of his own free will.

Sasuke's self-satisfied smile disappeared completely, his expression was now as calm as he could fake, some anger still remained but it was masked well enough for Naru not to notice. "Now" Sasuke started, "how about we forget that whole incident just now occurred" Sasuke offered 'kindly' in a soft enough tone for Naru to believe.

Naru didn't really want to believe him, but the mere suggestion made her feel slightly at ease, but it did nothing to quell her guilt, nor do it help her with her embarrassment, now with a sound mind she realised that she was near enough naked in front of her black haired childhood friend. _"I always do the stupidest things when I'm drunk" _Naru thought as she looked up at the man who was waiting for some form of conformation from her.

Naru not knowing how to answer him nodded, as she moved her arms to her sides so she could keep the towel up, she was starting to feel chilly now and really wanted to get into something a little warmer, but it was obvious that the man wouldn't let her move any time soon.

"Good" he replied with a smile, Naru couldn't read the true emotion behind his smile but it felt a little warmer than before, maybe he was a forgiving person she started to think, _"time does change people after all" _Naru thought before Sasuke decided to continue.

"Now that you're a little more…. Sound of mind, can you please listen to my situation, if you really are Naruto you'd at least give me that opportunity" Sasuke asked in a pleading voice, Naru for some reason felt as if she couldn't deny him, it was just like when they were kids.

"O-okay" Naru stuttered in reply, before shivering slightly, she was really cold now, the mixture of being scared out of her senses and wearing a very revealing towel was making her feel freezing, not only that she felt her cheeks reddening.

Sasuke continued to look at her and smiled before removing his arms from her shoulders, then without a second thought he turned his back to her, "you should get changed before we continue this, you may catch a cold if you're not careful." Sasuke suggested, he held no sympathy for her after the comments about Rei, but he understood slightly, he did weird things when he was drunk too.

Now that he was a considerable distance from him she could see blood dripping from his right hand, she then looked to her shoulder to see some traces of his blood, _"he must have cut himself when he smashed the lamp" _she thought feeling even more guilty for her actions. "T-thank you, I'll just go and get changed, I won't be long" she blurted out before getting up and running to the door in the top left hand corner of the room, she then opened it and fled into what Sasuke assumed to be her bedroom.

Sasuke was now all alone in the living room, his blood was dripping slowly onto the carpet, he didn't care if it stained, it was 'Naru's' fault after all, no-one spoke that way about Rei after all she was the most important thing to him in the world. _"As long as I'm alive I'll do everything I can for her, I'll never just sit and watch as my parents turn her into an emotionless doll." _

Sasuke dwelled on the point for a moment. He never considered the fact that Rei would be controlled by his parents if he'd killed himself, this made him feel angry and ashamed of himself. _"Maybe I do owe that girl something" _Sasuke thought deeply, he was still having doubts that the woman was Naruto, yet for some reason the thought was starting to sound more and more true, the woman did emit the same aura as Naruto even if she was a little colder.

"_That's probably why I allowed her to leave" _thought Sasuke. It was true after all, for some reason when he looked into the woman's blue eyes he felt compelled to give her a small chance, Naruto used to have a similar effect on him. _"This is well too complicated for my liking" _Sasuke thought tiredly as he looked at his cut hand.

"_The adrenaline must be subduing the pain" _Sasuke thought as he stared at the cut hand which had a few shards of glass in it, when he was finally truly calm he was sure it was going to sting like hell. Sasuke just stood still before directing his vision to the shards of glass which used to be a lamp and for some reason he had the sudden urge to clean them up.

"_What's taking her so long?" _Sasuke thought impatiently, she even said she wouldn't take long, so why had she already been five minutes, it started to frustrate the adult who was finally starting to feel sharp pain in his hand which caused him to wince.

After another two minutes of waiting Naru finally appeared, she came out wearing a rather expensive looking pink and white dressing gown; she had also noticeably done her hair since her long red locks cascaded down her back beautifully. "Sorry for the wait" the woman apologised with a slight quiver in her voice, she was calmer now but she still was slightly scared.

Sasuke merely sighed and waved it off with his cut hand "it doesn't matter" Sasuke said calmly, ignoring the stabbing pain he felt in his hand.

At the sight of his hand Naru gasped and told him she'd be right back before running passed the piano and over to the door at the top left hand corner of the room, as Sasuke had guessed it was one of those doors which you merely needed to push for them to open, which explained the lack of a handle.

Moments later Naru came out with a first aid kit in her hands and walked towards Sasuke, when she was in front of him she grabbed his hand without warning causing Sasuke to wince. "Hey what are you doing?" Sasuke asked in a pained, yet slightly angry voice which caused Naru to flinch before continuing.

Naru swallowed her fear and simply replied by saying "stopping the bleeding before it gets too out of control" she then sat down on the nearby sofa so she could be closer to the bloody hand.

"I don't need help with something like this, it doesn't hurt at all" Sasuke told her, but she just shook her head and donned a cheeky smile.

"Say's the fully grown man who just winced from me touching his hand" Naru retorted, giggling slightly much to Sasuke's displeasure, for some reason she managed to forget that this was the same man who scared the shit into her only moments earlier, maybe her natural concern she'd always had for Sasuke was the reason.

First of all Naru started by removing the glass, she wasn't a surgeon or anything, to be honest she only knew very basic first aid, so she just did what she thought was right. "This may sting a little" she told the man before applying pressure on both sides of the cuts in hopes that the glass would dislodge itself, it worked with splinters so she thought it'd work with glass, as she did this Sasuke let out a small cry, nothing too serious, it was more like exhaling a large breath if anything.

Much to her delight it worked a treat, but that just made the hand bleed even more, she presumed the glass had 'plugged' the cut slightly, preventing some blood from escaping, once she was done she got out the bandages. "Are bandages ok, or do you think you'll be fine with band-aids instead?" Naru asked the man.

"Bandages would be better" Sasuke advised, besides a simple band-aid couldn't stop this type of cut.

"You sure, I have some pretty cute band-aids you know, they also come in different sizes" Naru joked happily. _"Sasuke's taking this better than I thought he would, perhaps he isn't angry at me anymore" _thought Naru, and to be honest it seemed like the truth, Sasuke didn't look angry anymore, this calmed her down significantly.

"Hn whatever" Sasuke replied in a bored tone, it didn't hold any resentment, it just seemed like the right reply to give, _"Oh god I'm treating her like the Dobe!" _Sasuke thought in a panic, but just as quick as those worries came they disappeared.

For the small moment it was as if nothing had happened between the two, the woman's gentle teasing was just similar to the interaction Sasuke and Naruto had as children, albeit they were slightly more heated, yet despite this, Sasuke seemed to forgive the woman, whilst at the same time, began to believe that the woman in front of him really might be Naruto.

"_I still don't think you're a woman" _Sasuke accused in his mind comically as he directed his eyes passed her hands which were currently bandaging his and straight onto her crotch. _"What are you really?" _Sasuke wondered curiously, it was something he really wanted to know for some reason. _"Have you always been this way?" _Sasuke asked her in his mind since he probably wasn't ever going to ask it to his/her face.

"There all done!" she cheered happily at her handiwork, she actually did quite a good job, but Sasuke was wondering how Rei would react to seeing his hand in a bandage, Sasuke was sure she'd worry about him.

"Thanks" Sasuke told the girl who just smiled in return and went to sit on her lounge chair.

"So, you need my help right?" Naru asked in a clear voice, showing no signs of her drunken attitude from before, Sasuke nodded in reply. "What exactly is the problem?" Naru asked the man with a smudging of concern in her voice.

Sasuke sighed and sat on the lounge chair opposite hers. "Pretty much what I told you the other night, I have nowhere to go and I'm concerned for Rei, she needs a stable environment yet I don't want to send her to my parents, from my own selfishness and my worry that they'd change her in some way" Sasuke explained in a serious tone, long gone was the acting, this was him being completely honest.

Naru looked at the black haired man with a sympathetic expression, "So is Sakura… you know?" Naru asked him, she assumed Sakura was the mother of Rei, call it instinct. Sasuke's nod verified her worries. "I'm so sorry" Naru offered her sympathies, similar to how Kushina reacted.

"Please don't pity me" Sasuke asked in a low voice, "I've had enough given to me today as it is" he explained, Naru felt like apologising but she didn't.

Naru deciding to small talk before getting to the main point diverted the conversation onto Sasuke's daughter. "So where is Rei anyway?" Naru asked curiously.

"Your mother agreed to look after her for me" Sasuke replied with a smirk.

Naru's eyes widened, "how did you make her agree to that?" she asked feeling rather curious, it was no secret by now that her parents hated Sasuke.

"She misunderstood why I wanted to contact you, thinking I was merely contacting you to break the news about Sakura's…. passing" Sasuke replied, going rather quiet as he talked about Sakura.

Naru noticing Sasuke's sad expression quickly changed the topic, "how old is she anyway?" Naru queried "three or four years?" Naru guessed.

"She's five years old" Sasuke replied.

"So you were seventeen when she was born?" Naru questioned, Sasuke nodded in reply. "No wonder why you couldn't do any training" Naru whispered quietly, Sasuke didn't hear it. "So Sasuke" Naru started catching his attention, "what do you need help with?" she asked in a determined voice.

Sasuke was taken by surprise at her seriousness, to be honest never thought it through at all, he didn't know what he needed, he went to Naru in hopes that something would happen he didn't know what he didn't even know what to ask. Maybe he should just say a problem and let 'her' solve it.

Sasuke took a deep breath and said the first thing that came to mind. "I am homeless and Rei needs somewhere to live, I love her to much to send her to my parents" Sasuke told her, averting his gaze because he felt embarrassed saying such words out loud.

Naru sat there thinking about his words, what could she possibly do for him, giving him money was out of the question it wouldn't last long and he could become dependent on her money, she didn't want Sasuke to sink that low. _"What are you expecting me to do Sasuke, I know I told you to turn to someone, but I never thought it'd be you and the person to turn to was me!" _Naru screamed in her mind, she couldn't just turn him away like she had tried to earlier.

Silence filled the area, Naru was deep in thought and Sasuke sat calmly he had nothing to lose after all, he spent his time torn between thoughts about how Naruto became like he/she is now and what the now dubbed 'Naru' would do, he knew it was bad to expect peoples help but this wasn't for him, he had been telling himself that all day.

The air between them seemed to become all tense, this started to become a much more serious matter than originally intended, sure Sasuke's life was in the balance technically but the atmosphere was too tense. _"I need to help him somehow" _Naru thought, the reason for this sudden obligation to help him was probably a mixture of guilt and fear, from talking about someone's daughter that way to the thought that the last of his childhood friends may potentially kill himself.

"I-I" Naru stuttered not thinking about anything.

"Yes?" Sasuke blurted out without thinking, at that moment in time he was thinking about how Naruto could look so much like a real woman but still be a man, yet the answer eluded him.

"Ummm, I have an s-spare room!" Naru replied without thinking, she instantly covered her mouth. _"Stupid suggestion, he may get the wrong idea, besides it's not like I can just house a homeless person even if he is my friend, what would mum and dad do?" _she thought in a panic, which worsened when she saw Sasuke's eyes brighten, _"Oh shit I can't say no now!"_

"Is that really okay?" Sasuke asked, both feeling relieved yet cautious.

"Umm y-yeah but well you know there is only one room, but there's two of you right, besides there is lots of things you'd need to take into consideration, umm schooling for Rei, jobs for you umm where would you sleep!" Naru replied at lightning speed, she wasn't sure what she was talking about, but she tried to think of all the reasons why it would be bad to 'live' together.

"I can sleep on the floor, I'm used to it, I could also sleep on the sofa if you let me" Sasuke replied confidently, he wasn't proud that he hadn't slept in a real bed for years, but it did come in handy for the first time in his life.

Panic rose in Naru, "What about Rei? It's hard to find schools in the city" Naru told the black haired man.

"I'm sure I could find her a school, it may cost a lot of money, but I'll work twice as hard to get her there, please Naruto, no please NARU" Sasuke replied in an equally fast speed, this was turning into a debate that Naru was surely going to lose.

"W-what about my parents, they'd hate you even more!" Naru told him, but seriously why would that make him give up on this chance.

"Like I care what they think, besides I'm sure Rei has melted their hearts already, she'll keep them at bay" Sasuke replied confidently, and shockingly he was correct about melting their hearts in a figure of speech.

"Umm, Ummm" Naru tried to protest but she'd lost, "O…k" she agreed reluctantly, Sasuke threw his arms up happily at this. "Y-you better pull your weight though" Naru told him and Sasuke practically saluted.

"Don't worry, I will, I will" Sasuke replied _"god I sound like a dog… but once again, I'll swallow my pride for Rei's happiness." _

"Good" Naru replied in an awkward voice, and then everything went silent.

"Sooo" Sasuke said breaking the silence, "what exactly are you anyway?" Sasuke asked curiously, this was followed by him mentally slapping himself; he never wanted to ask 'her' that question.

Naru smirked slightly and opened her lips ready to answer the man.

* * *

(End Chapter)

Well that is chapter five done, whew so Naru and Sasuke are going to be living together and by the looks of it, Naru has some feelings for the man perhaps? I'll leave that one up to you readers to decide, oh and also what is Naru going to say in reply?

I make most of this up as I go along, some parts are planned, yet the dialogue and some other scenes are often made up on the fly, I hope I am doing a good job despite this.

Oh I do have an intsy wincy request from you, if you review could you perhaps comment on something about the story, I love getting reviews, I really do, however I will use your reviews to improve the quality of this fiction, so some constructive criticism is welcomed, however flaming isn't lol.

The birdseye view of the apartment will be up soon, oh and just a warning I may not be able to update tomorrow but we'll see, it's all down to whether I can spare a few hours to get some writing done.

Reviews would be appreciated, but what's more important is enjoying the story :)

**-Aquilon**


	6. The Parents!

**Lean on Me chapter six**

Wow can you believe it; I'm on chapter six of this fiction, rather surprising for a lazy person like me who quits fictions rather fast, though for some reason I can't stop writing this one.

I really must thank you all for your reviews, they help to inspire me to write and to be honest I am rather surprised with the popularity of this story, I wasn't expecting this many reviews so fast, so thank you all ^_^

Well let's start the chapter!

**The Parents!**

Naru smirked slightly and opened her lips ready to answer the man. "Sasuke, before I answer that, what do you think I am?" she asked curiously, she wore an expectant look, she wanted to know what Sasuke thought first.

Sasuke stared down at the red haired woman, in all aspects she looked like a woman to him, and though it's wrong to think, Naruto in his eyes had grown up to look quite 'beautiful' but he'd never say that, it would be like calling himself gay. The person in front of him had changed since his/her younger years, Naruto used to have blonde hair, his face used to be more masculine well as masculine as possible for someone who hadn't hit puberty.

Now 'Naruto' was very feminine, 'his' hair was now red like 'his' mothers, it was no longer spiky anymore, it was now long and tied back, he wasn't sure what style the hair was usually in but it was obvious it wasn't going to be like it was in childhood. 'He' had remained physically small being much smaller and rounded than his tall 6"1' muscular frame.

If you hadn't known the person from childhood you'd think they were a woman no doubt, but to him Naruto was a guy, even if Naruto was always a girl and hiding it, he couldn't get that thought out of his mind, he was beginning to have doubts that Naruto was ever a guy. Sasuke sighed slightly and looked at the woman "physically you're a… woman" Sasuke said reluctantly "but I still have my doubts about your gender, however if I never knew you, I'd have mistaken you for a woman" Sasuke admitted before turning away from her gaze.

Naru smiled softly at this, "then we'll leave it like that for now" Naru replied, still smiling.

Sasuke was rather irritated at this and spoke his mind about it too, "but you said you'd tell me what you were!" Sasuke replied in a loud voice yet it lacked anger, it was more like a protest than anything else.

"I did tell you, right now I'm a woman, you did ask me what I was, not what my true origin is" Naru corrected whilst grinning at him, noticing Sasuke's irritation she continued with "don't worry you'll find out one day, I promise you that Sasuke, but for now let's leave it like this" she assured him and for now Sasuke seemed content with that.

"As long as you explain everything to me one day I don't mind" Sasuke told her, causing her to smile again, "I want to know the truth about my best friend after all" Sasuke finished, looking away again to conceal his embarrassment at saying such a thing.

Naru turned her back towards the man asked steadily walked back to her room with a blush on her face, "thank you" she whispered quietly enough for Sasuke not to hear. Just as she reached the door she said "I'm going to dress into something more appropriate, it's late so I'll drive you to my parent's house to pick up Rei" and with that she walked into the room and shut it behind her.

Once again Sasuke was left in silence, but this time he wasn't feeling tense at all, the correct term was that he was feeling relaxed. _"Who would have thought I'd be living here" _he thought, it was kind of strange that he had been kicked out of a damp old apartment and now was going to live in what he would describe to be paradise.

"_I can't become dependent though, first things first, I must get a job for myself and find Rei a school, I won't rely on Naru's money, wait I just referred to Naruto as Naru?" _Sasuke was surprised at his thoughts before he dismissed the surprise. _"Naruto is a woman in my eyes… for now so 'she' will be referred to as Naru until a later date" _Sasuke told himself before turning to the broken glass shards, "I'll just clean these up" he told himself before walking over to them and crouching down, "It's the least I can do."

Sasuke didn't take long to pick up the shards, of course he didn't manage to get them all, but the more threatening large ones were out of the way, he placed these shards on the coffee table, after this he sat back in the lounge chair he was sitting on earlier.

After about five more minutes of waiting Naru came back into the room wearing a grey longline shirt which had a scoop neckline, on the shirt was some form of print that Sasuke couldn't make out since the letters were black and slightly faded, she also wore some black skinny jeans, on her wrist she wore some wristbands, and also a watch.

Sasuke was momentarily surprised, if this was Naruto, really Naruto then it was embarrassing to say but he grew up to be… quite hot. Sasuke coughed slightly to 'clear his throat' before speaking. "Aren't you going to be cold in that? I mean winter is very near and it's already starting to get chilly at night" Sasuke asked her. "Seriously how did women walk around in such thin clothing and be completely fine about it?" he wondered.

Naru just smiled and lifted her arm which was concealed. In her hand was a pink scarf with a ladder stitch design and matching gloves. "I'd rather look good and be slightly cold" Naru replied with a grin, "besides I'm taking a coat with me so don't worry" she told him before grinning again, "the car has heating anyway, it's not like I'm walking far, am I going to get a cold from walking to the car?" she asked jokingly.

"Hn whatever" Sasuke replied childishly, "I wasn't even worried, I was just letting you know" Sasuke continued, this time not looking at her and walking towards the door, this little action caused Naru to grin.

"_Is he flustered around me or something?" _she thought curiously as she followed him towards the door, turning to the side to see most of the glass had been cleared up. _"Nah Sasuke's always been that way, he could never show his true feelings without feeling embarrassed" _she thought fondly as she caught up to him. "Just a minute let me get my coat on" Naru told him.

Sasuke merely smirked and raised an eyebrow, "is this going to take ten minutes as well?" he asked sarcastically, causing Naru to twitch slightly, _"sarcastic bastard" _Naru thought angrily before 'hmph-ing' to show she didn't care, this equally annoyed Sasuke, when he teased people he liked them to react, it made it more worthwhile in the long run.

Naru as she was putting on her coat looked Sasuke once over, his clothes were rather plain, yet she couldn't deny that he was rather handsome, that was a massive compliment coming from her since she was generally not interested in anyone physically some people called her asexual but she didn't really care. "You going to be ok in those clothes, I mean you don't even have a jacket" Naru asked in a concerned voice.

Sasuke smirked, "it's not like I'm walking far is it also your car has heating right?" Sasuke repeated similar words that she had said to him only earlier, this time he got a reaction in the form of a kick to the shins like she had done earlier, "ouch!" Sasuke complained angrily but the woman just copied Sasuke by smirking.

"If you continue acting like that I'll make you walk back here" Naru said in a threatening voice, of course she didn't mean it, he knew that, but it made him contemplate his actions slightly. _"Did I just shut the teme up? This is awesome!" _Naru thought excitedly as she looked up at the Uchiha, she seemed to enjoy seeing him with that frown on his face, was she sadistic? She had to think about that at a later date.

"Ok… sorry" Sasuke apologised, _"how dare I let anyone, especially Naru control me!" _Sasuke thought angrily but he kept quiet, he didn't like the sound of walking back to this apartment to arrive at around 1am when everyone was asleep, to be honest he wasn't sure he could just sneak in like before. "Can we just leave please?" he asked, and she nodded, now wearing her coat, it went down to her thighs and was black in colour, the waist was tied by a belt.

"I don't think the scarf and the gloves suit the coat" Sasuke taunted slightly gaining a small glare from the woman.

"Hmph like I care what you think!" she said angrily as she started to open the door, "besides when did you become such a fashion expert?" she asked sarcastically, "before commenting on others' outfits why not look at yourself first!" Naru replied defensively as she walked out of the door first, few things annoyed her, but others mocking her taste really did anger her

"Well I am ever so sorry that I can't afford the luxuries that you can" Sasuke replied, he wasn't angry it was more like playful banter from his side of the argument. "If I could I'd easily be able to show you a thing or two" Sasuke said arrogantly, he wasn't serious in his challenge, but apparently Naru had taken it seriously.

A small grin appeared on Naru's face as Sasuke exited the apartment. "Hmm really, would you now?" she mused in a sing song voice, despite this Sasuke noticed the change in attitude; it was obvious to him that Naru wanted to prove him wrong. "How about we make a little wager? Mr. Fashion expert" Naru challenged, as she began to lock the door.

"What kind of wager?" Sasuke asked warily, but he wasn't going to back down, not yet anyway.

"You just have to prove yourself right, that you could teach me a thing or two, that shouldn't be too hard for you should it?" Naru asked in a tone which was a mixture of declaring a challenge and being sarcastic.

"Still a Dobe I see" Sasuke commented on Naru's challenge.

"W-what WHY?" Naru shouted at the man angrily, she didn't think there was anything stupid about her challenge.

"A wager should have some form of reward, besides it would be near impossible to fulfil, I don't have money to waste on clothes and how would you even measure it, after all it's down to you learning something, you could easily manipulate the results, stupid Dobe" Sasuke taunted, acting all arrogant about how he'd just verbally owned Naru.

"D-don't call me Dobe!" Naru roared angrily.

"Shh don't make too much noise in the halls, you punished me for doing that earlier" Sasuke warned her in a cheeky tone, it was fun to annoy people like this, especially when they reacted angrily.

"I swear Sasuke I could change my mind about living arrangements at any second so don't push me!" Naru threatened, but Sasuke had a feeling that she wasn't being serious, as if she believed that just by saying that he'd submit to her will.

"Come up with a better line next time Dobe" Sasuke taunted and began to walk away slowly, Naru muffled a scream of anger at his words, which caused Sasuke to muffle his laughter as he walked away, when all of a sudden he heard the clattering of shoes, when he was about to turn around he felt a weight on his back, and some light pressure around his neck, but nothing that would make him worry.

"I told you not to call me DOBE!" the woman screamed in his ear as she tried to strangle him (jokingly of course), but she realised it wasn't having an effect on him, and in fact he began to walk with her still hanging from his back.

"Hmm, did I hear something just now? Nah" Sasuke asked before quickly dismissing it, he then started to move faster, causing the woman on his back to panic slightly.

"Stop, Stop!" the woman cried out, her face was bright red, she didn't like making such an embarrassing scene, singing on a stage was much easier than having someone cause her to scream like an idiot due to fear.

"What was that, I didn't hear you correctly?" Sasuke asked in an expectant tone, "you know asking politely works sometimes" Sasuke told her as he broke into a sprint.

"Alright, Alright, Stop please!" Naru cried again but Sasuke just laughed.

"It works sometimes, not all the time Naru" Sasuke told her in a mocking tone, as he reached the elevator, before he could say anything else it pinged open to reveal the forms of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Namikaze, in Kushina's arms was Rei Uchiha who was sleeping soundly, and in Minato's arms was Rei's suitcase and Sasuke's bag.

Everything just froze for a moment, Sasuke and Naru both went silent, Sasuke in particular, mainly because he didn't like the angry look on the blonde haired man's face. Since no-one was speaking Naru bravely decided to break the silence. "Hi daddy!" she chirped happily but she soon lost that happy tune when Minato directed his anger, albeit slightly toned down anger, towards her.

"W-what's wrong daddy?" Naru asked now sounding rather timid, Sasuke during this allowed her to get off his back, mainly so he could retreat a few steps away from the blonde man who stepped in the hallway.

"What's wrong?" Minato started sounding quite irritated, Naru flinched and Sasuke for some strange reason stepped a little in front of her, he didn't know why, besides no-one else noticed this little fact. "What's wrong is that we've been calling you for hours and you haven't answered, do you know how worried I…. your mother was, she practically dragged me out the door!" Minato started strongly, before finishing lamely, probably due to the fact that he felt Kushina's cold glare on his neck.

"W-worried, why?" Naru asked feeling confused and still afraid, her dad was always kind to her but when he lost his temper he could nearly rival mom.

Minato didn't answer, instead he just directed his gaze towards Sasuke with that look that meant 'you are so dead if this is your fault' Sasuke picked up on it, but since Naru's view was slightly obscured by Sasuke's back she didn't see it completely.

"N-nice to see you again M-Mr. Namikaze" Sasuke said in a quiet voice, he was too polite this made all the Namikaze family suddenly become suspicious. _"If they find out that I kind of threatened Naru, they'll really kill me, wait, I'll need to keep living here a secret, Oh shit, not good" _Sasuke worried, yet he didn't allow his face to portray these emotions.

"Nice to see you too Uchiha" Minato replied in a strained voice, sparks clashed when their eyes met, Sasuke didn't hate Minato, yet Minato hated him, this caused them to become 'enemies' to some perspective. "Would you explain to me why my daughter was screaming stop whilst she hung from your neck?" Minato asked in a calm tone, concealing his anger.

"We were... playing… a" Sasuke started but before he could finish he felt a kick in the back of his leg, shutting him up momentarily for Naru to tell him that she'd deal with it.

"I wanted a piggy back ride" Naru said in a cheerful tone leaving Sasuke and Minato in shock, Sasuke nearly grinded his teeth from that, his explanation was way better, seriously Minato would never fall for such a thing.

"Oh that was all was it, ah it's fine then" Minato replied to the girl with a smile, Sasuke's mouth dropped in shock, then Minato turned to him and glared again, _"he is just pretending to believe her, bastard" _Sasuke thought, and once again sparks began to meet, and silence befell them.

"How about we all go inside?" Kushina suggested wisely after sensing her 'daughters' distress at the situation, she may not have liked Sasuke but he hadn't done anything suspicious… yet.

Sasuke and Minato didn't reply, instead they were too focused on their staring 'war' to even notice Kushina. Then at the same time Naru and Kushina attacked the males in front of them, Naru kicked Sasuke in the calf whilst Kushina going a little further hit Minato in the back, causing both males to attempt to scream at their attackers, both failed in different ways, Naru threatened him that she'd reveal he was going to live with her to her parents, Kushina dealt with Minato with her fists.

"Well now that you 'boys' are done fighting follow me" Naru said in a cheerful, yet wary tone, she had to play it safe, otherwise her parents may find out about Sasuke and Rei and that they'd be living with her for the meantime.

With that all three of them followed the red haired 'woman' to her apartment, Minato walked closest to Naru and Sasuke walked slowly near the back, Kushina walked up to the young man and tapped him on the shoulder. "Here" she said handing the sleeping Rei back to her father, "you have quite a cute daughter there Sasuke" Kushina admitted and Sasuke smiled, pulling the sleeping Rei closer to him.

* * *

As the group walked into the house Naru allowed her parents and Sasuke to go to the living room whilst she removed her coat, seriously what the hell was the point in her getting ready for them just to come round. _"Them coming around is the worst possible outcome, if we picked up Rei from there we'd have no trouble, I could have lied about taking Sasuke to the station but no, they had to arrive, thanks a lot, overprotective daddy of mine!" _Naru thought angrily, to be honest she didn't know why she was angry, was she actually looking forward to living with Sasuke for however brief it may be?

"_First things first, I must get them out of the apartment, I also need an excuse for why Sasuke is staying behind as they leave, daddy will be suspicious, mom on the other hand isn't as suspicious of Sasuke." _Naru thought to herself readying a game plan, she knew that if she left Sasuke and Minato alone for too long one of them would snap.

"_Why can't you just get along?" _Naru thought as she put her coat on the stand and walked into the living room to see Minato staring at the broken glass from earlier which Sasuke had put on the Coffee table. _"Shit!" _Naru thought in a panic as she rushed into the living room.

"Hmm" Minato mumbled staring at the glass, he then looked at Sasuke's bandaged hand, "Sasuke when did you get that injury on your hand?" Sasuke gave him a weird look but Minato gave a fake but realistic looking smile and said "don't worry I'm just curious."

"Oh this well I got it a few m-"Sasuke started but then he saw Naru shaking her head furiously, Sasuke picking up on this little sign continued, "Month's ago, it's very bad, I broke it having my hand" he then saw Naru signalling him by slamming one hand on the other "slammed in the door" Sasuke finished coolly as Naru just face palmed. Kushina didn't miss this, but she ignored it, besides he had no bandage earlier, but she felt as if her 'daughter' would be incredibly pissed at her if she said anything, and Kushina doted on Naru in her own way.

Minato on the other hand just laughed at Sasuke, seemingly enjoying the thought of either Sasuke or somebody else, slamming a door against Sasuke's hand. "That must have been very painful" Minato replied with slight happiness in his voice and though he wasn't convinced, he still found it funny, and enough to distract him.

Things weren't looking good already and Naru knew if Minato found the bloodstains from earlier shit would really hit the fan, it could have only been one person, and with her dads overprotective nature he'd surely expect the worst, well he wouldn't be far off, but she was at fault for that entire incident.

Naru just watched her parents, mainly Minato try and corner Sasuke in terms of conversation but he was holding his own whilst at the same time, bounced his knee up and down since Rei was curled up on him. _"I need to separate Sasuke and my parents first" _Naru thought, then inspiration hit her the moment she looked at Rei again.

"Sasuke, Rei looks sleepy how about I show you where to put her" Naru offered in a kind voice and before Sasuke could protest Naru gave him a serious look, once again Kushina didn't miss this, but Minato too busy 'watching' Sasuke missed Naru's expression.

"Oh… okay" Sasuke said standing up softly so he didn't wake the little Rei "be right back" Sasuke informed and Naru walked over to the door in the bottom left hand corner of the room, she entered first and waited for Sasuke to arrive.

Once Naru was sure her father wasn't able to hear she began to whisper to Sasuke. "We need to avoid all conversation about the lamp; we never cleaned up the blood so daddy will instantly link the two, and I'm sorry but it's hard lying to him" Naru explained.

"Hn" Sasuke replied, more interested in putting Rei to bed, luckily enough Naru's parents had brought over his stuff, so he didn't have to worry about going back if they made it through this.

"Hey are you listening to me!" Naru asked in a sharp whisper.

"Sorry but Rei comes first" Sasuke told her, after looking his daughter he turned to Naru with a serious look and asked, "do you think we should get Rei's pyjamas now or should I just let her sleep in what she's wearing?"

Naru was dumfounded by Sasuke's attitude, she was expecting him to be all serious about this, especially since he practically begged, but here he was speaking about his little girls Pj's. Naru sighed and said "Pj's would actually buy us some time, we can talk whilst you dress her" Naru informed, before saying "be right back" and with that she left the room to get Rei's suitcase.

As Naru left the room Minato and Kushina were looking at her with mixed looks from the other side of the room, Kushina was looking at her with a curious gaze whilst Minato was obviously looking for answers, no-one takes over four hours to break news about a death, even if they were close, well some did, but she didn't want Sasuke around Naru any longer than necessary, after all he didn't want him influencing her.

"Hey daddy do you know where Rei's suitcase is?" Naru asked, skilfully ignoring their gazes.

"Why would little Rei need to get dressed it's not like she's going to be here for long anyway right?" Minato asked, he wasn't being spiteful in the least he was actually being serious and logical, what Minato wasn't expecting was a look of shock from Naru who thought she'd been found out, before Naru could say anything bad though Kushina butt in.

"Even if they aren't staying here for long" Kushina started before putting on a serious look, "Do you really expect her to sleep in her clothes, it'll be uncomfortable for her" Kushina continued with a very realistic glare, Naru had no idea that she was trying to help her out instead of sticking up for Rei.

"O-of course not d-dear" Minato replied in a stutter, he'd been hit enough today and whilst he could take all her 'beatings' he had developed a little soft spot for the girl as well this was in stark contrast to the special dark spot of hatred that he held for the girl's father.

"Then give Naru the suitcase" Kushina told her husband who gave in instantly and returned to the door where he'd left the suitcase. "Here you go honey" Minato said to Naru as he handed over the suitcase, Naru then quickly retreated back to the room, leaving Kushina to stare at Naru.

"_What really went on here?" _Kushina wondered, but she ignored it for the time being, for now she'd try and keep Minato in line and Naru would do the same for Sasuke like she'd done earlier, Naru used to do that for Sasuke when they were younger as well, always stopping Sasuke from annoying Minato too much.

Naru entered the room with the suitcase and handed it to Sasuke who began opening it right away, "Sasuke can we talk whilst you're doing that?" Naru asked, and Sasuke merely nodded in agreement, he didn't want to speak too much whilst doing this in case he woke up Rei, otherwise he was fine.

Naru said "good" under her breath before continuing. "Sasuke I think mom knows you lied about the injury" Naru said in a whisper, Sasuke in return swung his head around to her with a look of shock on his face.

"What does that mean?" Sasuke asked feeling worried.

"It means for now we're safe, she hasn't brought it up and she helped me get the suitcase from daddy just now, I think she may be suspicious, but she is our best chance of getting out of this, but I may need to risk explaining it to her" Naru whispered again as Sasuke removed Rei's clothes throwing them at Naru and asking for some of Rei's pink Pj's.

"You mean we should take the option that has a 50/50 chance of working rather than trying to trick them until they leave" Sasuke asked in a sarcastic voice, "isn't that going against what we are trying to achieve?" Sasuke asked as Naru rummaged through the suitcase.

"No and get away from her, I'll dress her then we can talk, I can multi-task" Naru murmured as she got out some pink Pj's.

"Fine whatever" Sasuke conceded, he wanted to say 'men can't multi-task' but he'd already said that he thought of her as a woman right now so he couldn't really go against it. "Just make sure you don't wake her" Sasuke warned, and Naru smiled.

Naru walked over to the side of the bed where Rei was lying down sleeping, now shivering slightly due to being only in her underwear, she looked so cute to the older woman, she just felt like hugging her but she stopped herself from giving into the need and began to dress the little cutie slowly.

"Anyway about what you said, technically you are wrong, daddy will find out any minute, so our best option is getting mom to agree to all of this, now I know you and mom aren't the best of friends but I don't think she particularly hates you, I just think she dislikes you a little" Naru told the man, and true to her word she was multi-tasking rather well.

"Thanks it's great to know how much people hate me" Sasuke replied sarcastically gaining a mini glare from Naru who finished dressing Rei and was currently putting her under the covers, Sasuke felt slightly upset that it wasn't him who was tucking her in but he put up with it. Sasuke sighed and looked at the door "I suppose you're right but how do we deal with Kushina alone?" Sasuke asked.

Naru smirked and turned to Sasuke, "I have a plan for that" she said deviously.

* * *

Sasuke walked out of the room and went back to his lounge seat, he had memorised the plan it wasn't complicated, it was just dangerous, he had to try and get Minato so annoyed that he'd completely forget about how long Naru was gone with Kushina for, this was going to make Minato hate him even more, but hopefully Naru would explain to Kushina why he said the things he was about to say.

Naru came out and walked over to her mother and asked her to help her in the kitchen, she gave Kushina a serious look, and Kushina followed her into the kitchen leaving the two guys to themselves, Sasuke gulped and got into the safest position, in case Minato really did attack him.

"So" Sasuke started catching Minato's attention, "it really surprised me seeing 'Naruto' the way 'she' is now" Sasuke said in a laid back tone, Minato raised an eyebrow to this, was he going to try and insult his daughter in her home in front of her father? Surely Sasuke wasn't that stupid.

"How so?" Minato asked, and Sasuke smiled with a devious grin.

"Well trust me I never thought of Naruto this way when we were children but seriously" Sasuke said and he leaned over in his seat and put one hand to the side of his mouth to act as if he was telling a secret, "have you seen the ass on your daughter, my god that'll put most women to shame" he said with a cheeky grin, he could practically see a vain appear on Minato's head.

Yet despite this Minato didn't react, he promised Kushina when Naru and Sasuke were out of the room that he wouldn't get angry at Sasuke, and he was afraid of breaking that promise, for obvious reasons too. "It's a little unnerving that you think that about my daughter but she is beautiful I must agree with that" Minato replied, it was obviously forced, so was the laugh that followed his comment.

"True, we found something we can agree on, I'm kind of surprised" Sasuke said with a smile, "hmm since the ladies seem to be taking some time, let's talk a little more" Sasuke started, Minato nodded in agreement only because of his promise. "So what's your favourite sport Mr. Namikaze?" Sasuke asked curiously.

"Favourite…. Sport?" Minato asked curiously _"what is he getting at?" _Minato wondered.

"Yes favourite sport, I was just curious, I mean we kind of got off on the wrong foot years ago you know?" Sasuke said as if he was trying to make amends, Minato wasn't going to forgive him any time soon but he was just doing this to annoy the man, to keep him busy whilst the women talked.

"Well I'm a football fan (American Football), I used to play a little back in college actually" Minato boasted, those were fond memories for him.

Sasuke smirked, "don't you think players need a little too much protection though, it seems kind of wimpy to be honest" Sasuke said in a taunting tone, causing Minato's eye to twitch.

"Football is a sport for men" Minato replied angrily.

"Yes because real men need to be wrapped up in cotton wool do they?" Sasuke taunted sarcastically, Minato was getting rather angry at a very quick rate.

"Well it is a brutal sport, you need protection" Minato replied, ready to fight for his sport.

"Rugby is an equally dangerous sport and they don't have protection bar a gum shield, besides how many times do you need to stop and start the game it gets kind of annoying don't you think?" Sasuke asked, knowing what Minato's answer was going to be.

"How can football be annoying!" Minato shouted back.

"Even the name is annoying I mean 'Foot' ball, you call it Football and you don't even use your foot often, that already annoys me" Sasuke piled on the pressure.

"You're trying to piss me off aren't you" Minato said angrily, trying not to snap and then Sasuke played his final card.

"If I was trying to annoy you I'd tell you about my other thoughts" Sasuke said ambiguously, hoping Minato would take the bait.

"Oh and what are those?" Minato asked, yet for some reason he really regretted asking the question.

Sasuke merely smirked, "well you see…"

* * *

Only mere moments before the argument broke out, Naru had convinced her mother to come into the kitchen so she could 'help' her with something, Naru once she made sure Sasuke was talking to Minato, began to speak. "Mom I have something I have to say and you have to promise not to tell daddy" Naru told her mother, hoping she would allow her that much.

"It's about Sasuke right?" Kushina asked, though it wasn't really a question it was more like a statement, the truth was blatantly obvious after all. Once Naru nodded Kushina continued to talk, "I guessed something was up, he didn't have that bandage on earlier, now I don't like lying to your father but if you give me good reason to I'm all ears" Kushina said in a kind tone to her daughter.

Just before Naru continued she overheard Sasuke comment on her having a nice ass and began to blush out of embarrassment causing Kushina to tilt her head in confusion. "Ah nothing" Naru said quickly before continuing. "Mom, you may not know this but Sasuke is on the verge of living on the streets" Naru informed her mother, yet for some reason Kushina wasn't surprised.

"I know me and his little daughter talked earlier, from how she described 'home' it didn't seem very nice, apparently 'daddy' slept on the floor all the time, despite this she was all cheerful, obviously someone has been pulling the wool over Rei's eyes for her own good" Kushina told her daughter, who nodded, she knew that little fact.

"Anyways moving on, I have decided to umm…. Help him until he… get's back up on his feet" Naru said, getting quieter and quieter as she talked, the result wasn't what she expected.

"I guessed so… how much money are you giving him?" Kushina asked, thinking that her daughter was merely lending some money to Sasuke.

"Umm I'm not lending him money" Naru whispered.

"Then what are you giving him Naru?" Kushina felt worried to ask but she had to do it.

"You could say I'm lending him a bed and a sofa" Naru replied before laughing slightly to try and brighten up the atmosphere in the room.

"So in other words…." Kushina started, she was taking this rather well to be honest.

"He's going to be living with me for awhile, please don't tell daddy he'll definitely say no and then Sasuke would be on the street and well umm I don't want that" Naru explained, and Kushina stared at her daughter for a few moments.

"_Minato may not think so but I'm sure Sasuke would never try anything, I saw that look on his face when I mentioned Sakura, besides Naru seems ok about it" _Kushina thought and then she made up her mind, "fine I won't tell Minato, but in exchange I do want you to report back to me weekly, don't let him be a freeloader" Kushina told her daughter.

"Thanks mom" Naru said before going quiet, "umm there's a few more things I need you to do" Naru whispered, Kushina moved her hand to signal for Naru to continue, "get daddy out of here before he tries to kill Sasuke, and please don't believe anything daddy says, Sasuke only said a few things to get him angry so we can talk like this" Naru explained.

"What kind of things do you think he said?" Kushina asked, and at that moment a loud crash noise erupted from the living room.

"Oh crap" Naru shouted and ran out of the kitchen with Kushina to see Minato trying to get to Sasuke but failing due to the flipped coffee table in front of him.

"Don't you dare say that stuff about my daughter!" Minato shouted at Sasuke who was just grinning, this was mainly to keep his composure, however once he saw the two red headed women enter the living room he suddenly felt a little safer.

"Sasuke what did you do?" Naru asked angrily and Sasuke just smirked back at her.

"Apparently your dad doesn't like me appreciating your…." Sasuke stopped a second to find a good word "assets and got rather defensive when I mentioned them" Sasuke finished with a grin causing the girl to blush.

"STOP ACTING LIKE CHILDREN!" Kushina shouted causing both Minato and Sasuke to freeze, after a few seconds Minato had recovered and tried to get to Sasuke again but this time Kushina was behind him, "Minato" she whispered into his ear, "if you don't calm down now, I'll get your 'favourite' little toy" she whispered sadistically, causing Minato to freeze.

Sasuke and Naru were left momentarily stunned by how quickly Minato had calmed down, "and you!" Kushina shouted looking towards Sasuke, "I think you owe my daughter an apology for what you said!" Kushina said, playing along with what Naru would have wanted, Sasuke picking up on this apologized for his actions,

"Now you should go see to Rei, this racket probably woke her up" she advised before turning to Minato, "we're leaving Minato" Kushina told him in an angry tone.

"B-but" Minato tried to protest but Kushina turned around with a very dangerous look on her face.

"WE… ARE…. LEAVING!" Kushina shouted again… "Right Minato?" she asked her husband who nodded his head in submission, this was the end for the nights drama, it didn't take long for Minato to say goodbye and 'warn' Naru of Sasuke, then they were gone, and Naru had to remember to thank her mother even more next time she saw her, that was brilliant how she controlled her dad.

Naru was now the only one in the living room, she tried to life the coffee table but to no avail and ended up shouting for Sasuke's help, Sasuke left the room telling Rei to go back to bed as he left before sprinting over to her.

"Is he gone?" Sasuke asked sounding rather fearful.

"Yeah, my mum played along, you're safe for now but I have to report about you once a week" Naru explained to the man who sighed, "Mum said you have to start pulling your weight so pick that table up for me and put the glass shards from the lamp in the bin, it can be found in the kitchen" Naru instructed, Sasuke not feeling like arguing agreed and got to work.

Whilst Sasuke was doing this Naru took an opportunity to see Rei up close on her own for the first time, as she snuck into the guest room she saw Rei sleeping soundly, she was so cute and peaceful, but then all of a sudden her eyes opened. "W-where's daddy?" the little girl asked and Naru walked over to the edge of the bed and kneeled down.

"He's just doing some cleaning he'll be right back" Naru replied to the little girl softly causing the little girl to smile.

"What's your name?" the little girl asked curiously and Naru smiled down at the little girl.

"I'm Naru, I'm a friend of your daddy from when he was a child" Naru explained then for some reason she reached out and began to stroke the little girls hair softly, causing the little girl to yawn.

"Could you wake me up when daddy comes back?" the little girl asked and Naru smiled slightly.

"Of course I will sweetie" Naru lied, she was intending to let the little girl rest, that's what Sasuke wanted after all.

"Thank you" Rei replied before closing her eyes and falling to sleep, Naru seeing that her work was done left the room and smiled, with her back up against the wall. _"I wish I could be the mother to something as cute as that" _Naru thought sadly before dismissing her thoughts, _"what's the use, that's impossible anyway" _she concluded before walking to her room to go to bed.

* * *

(End Chapter)

Oooh finally the introduction arc is over with, now I can really start the story, Hah I bet you guys weren't expecting that to be the answer to the cliffhanger, sorry but I didn't want to reveal the main secret yet however I did mention a massive hint somewhere in this chapter, you just have to find it.

This chapter actually interprets close friendship rather than romance, of course some sexual attraction perhaps but the romance isn't going to be fast so dont get your hopes up too fast :D lol

Well sorry about the late update I hope this longer than usual chapter makes up for my laziness and the fact that I went to a party and ended up staying all night.

Well I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I decided to link some parts from previous chapters to make the scene with Minato and Kushina to be a bit more realistic than things made up on the fly.

Reviews are appreciated, but what's more important is enjoying the story :)

**-Aquilon**


	7. Living Together

**Lean on Me chapter seven**

Holy crap I hit 40 reviews, happy right now, sure it may not be a lot but it looks rather promising, especially since this fic is like only one week old, so I am happy for all your support.

Last chapter was the conclusion of the introduction of the fiction you may be thinking (WHAT THE HELL 25K words for an introduction?) well what can I say, I got a little out of hand maybe? But I didn't want to rush things and allowed things to just flow.

Remember I love all your reviews and views ^_^ now let's get on with the story shall we.

**Living Together **

Night fell quickly after Rei had gone to bed; Sasuke spotted Naru leaving Rei's room and saw a sad look on her face, _"What's that all about?" _Sasuke wondered curiously, but he decided not to talk about it. "Goodnight Naru" Sasuke called out to the woman who was retreating to her room.

Naru turned round and put a fake smile on and offered him a goodnight before walking into her room with her shoulders slumped. Sasuke not contented walked to her door and knocked but the woman didn't answer.

Sasuke didn't really want to ask her if she was ok, just in case Naru got the wrong idea, because of this he decided to try and get her attention first. "Hey Naru, do you have anything like a blanket or something? After all I'm sleeping on the sofa" Sasuke asked her and in mere moments the woman opened the door only slightly and held out a long pink blanket. "Umm… thanks Naru" Sasuke replied feeling rather put out.

"No problem" the woman said before closing the door on him, Sasuke was going to knock again but he suddenly decided not to, _"probably not in the mood to talk, maybe she'll talk in the morning" _Sasuke thought before walking to the sofa, _"at least I have something to keep me warm now" _he thought positively before removing his shirt then jumping onto the sofa and throwing the blanket over him. _"This is rather comfortable actually" _he thought as he slipped into unconsciousness.

* * *

The time was about 8:00am and Naru was the first to wake up, this was without the assistance of an alarm clock. Now there are many things that defines Naru, one of these is the fact that she hates mornings, an accurate description was that Naru detested mornings, she just couldn't function properly.

Yet today was different, she was on full alert, she was completely aware about everything, even if she looked like crap with her bed hair and slight tired look on her face. Naru just stared at the ceiling as she allowed herself to remain relaxed on the queen sized bed, thinking about yesterday's events only briefly.

As she continued to look at the ceiling she moved her hand from her side to her stomach, "hungry" she murmured painfully, "really hungry" she continued and then on the third rumble she willed herself out of bed, from there she walked over to her door to fetch her dressing gown. "Food first then shower" she muttered sleepily as she opened the door to her bedroom walking out into the dark living room.

Sighing to herself Naru walked slowly over to the large red curtains which were behind the piano and pulled them, to reveal a view of the city below, the city looked beautiful at nights, but she didn't like having the curtains open at those times. Now that the room was bright Naru turned around to see a sleeping Sasuke, whose hair was now just as messy as hers was, yet his was the more favourable kind of bed hair.

She spent a few minutes just standing there watching his sleeping form, it was so strange, she hadn't seen the man in years, she was sure her best friend from childhood had forgotten about her, she had kept the picture of her, Sasuke and Sakura for that very reason, she thought it would be the only time she could see him.

However she was wrong, through some twist of fate, she'd saved his life and now he was living in her home with his daughter who slept in the guest room, the mere thought was enough to bring a small smile to her face. _"He's kind of cute when he's sleeping" _she thought absentmindedly causing her to blush lightly, _"should I make him breakfast or not?" _she questioned herself, still rooted to the spot.

"How long are you going to stand there for?" Sasuke asked in a tired voice, she hadn't noticed him staring at her, now that was just embarrassing.

"S-sorry, I was just wondering if you wanted something to eat… but you looked so… cu… content sleeping that I wasn't sure what to do" Naru stuttered a reply before looking to her bare feet so she didn't have to look at the man.

Sasuke just groaned tiredly and rolled from his stomach to his side and gave her a once over, "no offense but you look like shit this morning" Sasuke commented in the most joking tone he could come up with.

Naru smiled slightly, she knew he didn't mean how it sounded. "I feel like it to" Naru replied with a grin before rubbing some sleep from her eyes and yawning, she then let out a childish giggle, "I could say the same for you Sasuke" she replied, causing him to smirk slightly.

"Yeah, yeah whatever" Sasuke replied in a tired tone before rolling over to his other side causing Naru to laugh happily.

"So do you want some breakfast or not?" Naru asked the sleepy man.

"What are you making?" Sasuke asked, now sounding a little bit more awake.

Naru let out an excited squeal like noise, "RAMEN!" she declared loudly, causing Sasuke to open his eyes wide.

"Ramen? For breakfast, are you insane?" Sasuke groaned, seriously how could people have ramen for breakfast?

Naru looked extremely offended by this for some reason Sasuke couldn't explain. "What's wrong with having ramen for breakfast? It's quick and it's tasty, I have it every single day" Naru declared passionately, Sasuke on the other hand found her stupid.

"You have ramen for breakfast every day?" he queried now waking up a little from the constant conversation.

"Yeah why?" she asked curiously.

Sasuke before answering her groaned loudly and rolled over twice, and got up off the sofa wearily, he suddenly felt chilly for some reason and when he turned to Naru and saw her blushing, he looked down to see he was only in his boxer shorts, which were rather tight, tight enough to get a good idea of the size, especially since he was experiencing 'morning glory' "Oh shit!" he shouted in frustration before pulling the blanket around him.

Whilst Sasuke was covering up his lower half Naru looked away but gave the occasional sideways glimpse to look him over before turning away again, _"he looks better without clothes on" _her mind told her, she didn't want to hear such things, but she couldn't deny it. "Mhmm" she murmured in a happy hum reluctantly, luckily Sasuke hadn't heard her.

"It's okay its fine to look now" Sasuke told the woman, who in response turned round to see Sasuke looking a little more modest, with the blanket wrapped around his waist so much that he must have locked down his little… big friend, yet despite this he made no effort to cover his excellently toned torso, which caused Naru to repeat the same thoughts over and over in her mind.

Naru after ten seconds of gawking snapped back to reality, "so you want breakfast?" she asked, making sure not making eye contact with the man, after all she was a rather innocent person. This mainly down to the fact that she didn't often become attracted to people in general, this made situations like this hard for her.

"Yeah sure" Sasuke replied but just as Naru was about to walk to the kitchen Sasuke stopped her, "I'll make it, I don't want Rei having something as unhealthy as ramen for breakfast" Sasuke told the woman seriously.

"I want ramen" Naru whined childishly, making sure not to turn around, she would have to slowly get used to this, but she was being thrown into the deep end with all this, how was her heart supposed to take this.

"Hn" Sasuke grunted and walked passed her "you got any bacon?" Sasuke asked as he walked to the kitchen ignoring her plea for ramen, slightly annoying her.

"Yeah why?" Naru asked, now feeling completely awake as she watched his well muscled back disappear from sight as Sasuke walked into the kitchen.

Naru swore she could hear Sasuke snort when she asked why "because that's amongst what we are having for breakfast" Sasuke said loudly so she could hear. Before Naru could protest Sasuke continued, "so whilst I'm doing this could you wake Rei up for me, and help her with having a shower or bath, perhaps you could help her get dressed too, that's if she lets you" Sasuke asked and for some reason Naru couldn't decline.

"O…ok" Naru called out to the man and he said a quick thank you and began to raid the kitchen, he needed to familiarise himself with this place, he didn't trust Naru to make anything other than ramen after all.

* * *

Naru approached the door and crept in to see the little angel sleeping soundly all snuggled up in the sheets, clinging onto what seemed to be a black stuffed rabbit, Naru wondered how she got it, but after she looked to the side to see the suitcase open with its contents all over the floor it became pretty obvious. "She must have opened it last night somehow" Naru told herself as she started picking up most of the little girls stuff and putting it back in the suitcase.

Once finished she looked at the sleeping Rei and asked her to get up in little more than a whisper, she repeated this about three times before finally deciding to shake her slightly, it worked a treat since Rei woke up rather fast, of course that didn't mean she was really awake it just meant her eyes were open.

As the girl looked into Naru's eyes with a questioning gaze Naru gave the child a small smile, "good morning sweetie, did you sleep well?" Naru asked in a soft voice and the little girl nodded and smiled back at her before stretching her tiny little arms out and yawning softly.

"You're the pretty lady from yesterday" the little girl stated as she looked at Naru as if she was trying to find something out. "Where's daddy?" she asked curiously, looking around to find her father.

"He's making you some breakfast" Naru replied before laughing slightly. "He asked me to help you with taking a shower or a bath; you don't mind me helping do you?" Naru asked hopefully and the little girl nodded happily.

"If daddy says so I'll do it!" the little girl exclaimed with a cheerful smile and stretched once again, dropping the rabbit on the floor, upon doing this she leaned over the bed to try and reach it but it was just out of grasp.

Naru seeing this kneeled down and picked the black rabbit up for her and handed it to her causing the little girl to giggle happily. "You really do what daddy says don't you" Naru commented and Rei hummed in agreement causing Naru to smile, "you're such a good girl Rei" Naru commented before picking her up, Rei didn't seem to mind, she actually laughed a little.

"What do you want a bath or a shower?" Naru asked curiously as she opened the door at the top left hand corner of the room this lead to the massive spa like bathroom, her room had a similar door, meaning it was a joined bathroom, on either side of the bathroom was an area with showers and one cubical like shower for guests who wanted privacy.

After a few seconds considering it, Rei shouted out "bath!" and pointed to the large hotspring like bath which was constantly being emptied and refilled with hot water so it never really got cold.

"Ok then" Naru joined in happily and put the little girl down "first of all we need to actually undress, can you do that yourself sweetie?" Naru asked as she began to strip off her dressing gown and her Pj's which consisted of some short grey shorts and a pink top.

"Yep" Rei exclaimed and tried to copy Naru and succeeded, Naru congratulated the little girl for this causing her to giggle happily. After quickly putting their discarded clothes in Rei's room, Naru then took the little girl's hand and went to the far corner of the bath where the water was a little shallower, after this she dipped one foot into the water to check the temperature.

"Hmm, not brilliant" Naru murmured to herself, she then took Rei over to this area at the far end of the bath where there was a heat control panel, Naru put it up to maximum temperature to heat the bath up enough so the bathroom would be extremely steamy later on.

Naru wanted the heat so she went over to one of the points where water came out, it was relatively shallow still so Rei could be in it, she then got in and lifted Rei in from the side afterwards who let out a small blissful sigh, Naru slightly wondered if this girl had ever been in a bath this size though she guessed not.

The duo's bath was quite eventful, it was mainly due to Rei's boundless energy and playfulness, she continuously splashed water everywhere, and even got into a 'water fight' with Naru, for Naru it was really fun and she guessed it was for Rei too. Occasionally Naru would help Rei wash, mainly just her back and her hair.

During the bath Naru got to know the little girl a little more, she learnt that Rei was extremely energetic and playful on top of that she held absolute adoration for her father and deceased mother, saying she loved her pink hair because her daddy said it made her beautiful like 'mommy' this is something that Naru agreed with.

Once out of the bath the two got dressed, with Naru assisting the little girl into her clothes, at Rei's request, that surprised Naru, once she was done dressing Rei, she took the little girl into the living room, and after telling Sasuke that Rei was done she went to her room to get dressed.

She came out wearing the same outfit she wore yesterday, this is due to the fact that she had worn it for only an hour, and she wasn't as petty as some people about that sort of thing, she had also done her hair the same way as yesterday.

When she reached the sofa she saw Rei kicking her legs back and forth just sitting there, Naru smiled at the girl and walked over to the television turning it on, she knew that at this time of day there was a lot of children's shows so it would have been perfect for the little girl and how right she was.

Rei acted like it was the first time she'd seen a television, now Naru knew that couldn't be the truth because everyone had seen a television, so Naru concluded that Rei was probably not used to television.

The next ten minutes flew by, Naru watched the show with Rei whose eyes were clearly fixed to the screen, her eyes showed many emotions all being either some form of happiness or some form of shock through amazement, and just when everything was going well, Sasuke had to ruin it, "Hey everyone breakfasts ready" the man shouted out tiredly and Rei instantly jumped off the sofa in response, she then looked side to side searching for her dad but to no avail.

After a few seconds she became confused and tugged at Naru's leg, Naru just looked down and took her by the hand and guided her to the kitchen door, but at that moment Sasuke walked out carrying three plates, one in each hand and the other he managed to somehow balance between his teeth. Naru suppressed a laugh and pointed to the coffee table; Sasuke nodded and put the food down before massaging his jaw.

"It's not much" Sasuke informed the woman before yawning, "But it's better than having ramen every morning, even if you're fine with it" Sasuke explained. Rei who was watching the whole scene snuck over to the table and pointed to the plate with the least food, but both of them didn't notice.

First of all she waved her hands hoping they'd look at her she then pouted, but no-one witnessed it, so she ended up poking her dad in the leg until he looked down at her. "Yes?" Sasuke questioned and once again Rei pointed to the plate, before looking back to the screen then back to the plate. "That one is yours" Sasuke told her, smiling at her and petting her head affectionately, but not enough to mess up her hair.

"Thank you" the little girl exclaimed with a giggle before eating, she didn't even bother sitting at the sofa, she just got on her knees and ate at the coffee table, mainly because it got her closer to the screen. As she did this Sasuke watched her with a small smile on his face, glad that she had adjusted so fast, Naru noticing this gave him a little poke.

"Softie" Naru said before walking over to one of the plates and picking it up, on the plate was two slices of bacon, some beans, two eggs, one sausage and some hashbrowns, Naru slightly winced at the plate catching the mans attention.

"What is it not good enough for you?" Sasuke asked before picking up his own plate and sitting down on one of the lounge chairs.

"I'll get fat from eating this" Naru moaned, causing Sasuke to scoff slightly, he felt like saying 'when did you become such a girl' but that was a redundant question in itself. "It's not funny, this'll go straight to my hips" she complained causing Sasuke to laugh.

"I'm surprised it hasn't already, you have been living off only ramen right, that's just as bad in large quantities" he replied smiling slightly when she went silent. _"Victory" _Sasuke thought, grinning cockily, "Rei has no complaints, stop being such a baby" Sasuke continued annoying the woman.

Naru decided to ignore Sasuke's little taunt before preaching about ramen._ "Naru needs to learn about other foods." _Sasuke thought as he looked at her untouched plate, ignoring her little rant about ramen superiority. "How about you eat some before you complain dobe" Sasuke offered, annoying the woman, but she made sure not to snap, there were children in the room.

"Hmph fine" Naru conceded she then with great hesitance she took a bite of the food, her eyes widened in shock and after swallowing she suddenly went quiet, causing Sasuke to grin triumphantly.

"You like it?" Sasuke asked and the woman nodded and turned to Rei who was still eating, slightly entranced by the television to care about her surroundings.

"Rei sweetie" Naru started with a sweet smile on her face getting the girls attention. "Do you like daddy's cooking?" she asked getting a dazed nod from the girl, obviously she was still interested in the television, "so how about he cooks every day" Naru suggested, "wouldn't that be good?" she finished and the little girl agreed before turning back to the television with a look of childish excitement on her face.

Sasuke watched the scene and realised that he had just got himself on cooking duty, he tried to protest but it was two against one, and he knew he had to pull his weight, so reluctantly he agreed to the woman.

"However you must have ramen on at least one day of the week" Naru told him, once again Sasuke agreed, this time more reluctantly. "Good" Naru said with a smile.

As dinner continued the conversation somehow slipped onto the subject of what everyone was doing that day. "So for today only I'll allow you to stay at the apartment all day whilst you get settled" Naru told the man, who nodded.

"So what about you got any plans?" Sasuke asked, he knew the answer would be yes, he was pretty sure that an idol would have a lot of jobs they had to do.

Naru merely nodded in agreement, not voicing what she was doing because to be honest she forgot after the drama that occurred last night, but she knew she had something important to do, so the best bet would be to call her manager after breakfast.

Breakfast continued like this, with a mixture of light hearted talking and Rei's entranced look which made Sasuke think she was going to become a tv-junkie or something, when they were all done Sasuke offered to clean up the plates for them whilst Naru called her manager, but before she got a chance she heard a knocking at the door, in response she ran to the door opening it to see her manager standing right in front of her.

Her manager was slightly taller than her, she wore her hair in a bun and wore office like clothes, the typical clothing you'd expect from a manager, she also wore some stylish glasses, she also wore a professional smile. "Morning TenTen" Naru greeted.

"Morning Naru, you ready to go?" the woman asked and Naru gave her a questioning gaze, TenTen wondered what was wrong since Naru was never like this in the mornings, she was always ready to go. "Is everything ok Naru?" the woman asked in concern but Naru simply shook her head.

"I'm fine let's go" Naru said, turning back to look at the apartment to memorise the layout just in case Sasuke did something stupid before she got back, however in the midst of this a large crash was heard followed by Sasuke cursing loudly before apologising to Rei.

"What was that?" the woman asked raising an eyebrow curiously.

"N-nothing" Naru stuttered, but she was instantly proven wrong when Sasuke just had to come to the door, topless and all, at least he was wearing trousers.

"Naru I kind of smashed the plates" Sasuke said angrily not noticing the woman at the door who began to grin at the sight of him.

"So this is why you weren't focused" the woman whispered into Naru's ear causing her to go bright red, TenTen assumed what she said was the truth because of this.

"N-no that's not it!" Naru protested weakly but the woman gave her an all knowing look annoying her.

"Hey Naru are you listening?" Sasuke asked and Naru turned around with an angry look.

"It doesn't matter; I'm going to work ok!" Naru said in an angry tone, this was probably due to embarrassment, she knew that TenTen liked to gossip and she didn't want something like this getting out.

Sasuke looked shocked and merely muttered "ok" and just as she walked off he said "bye" before walking away, Naru smiled slightly but didn't allow TenTen to see it, _"it's kind of nice having someone say goodbye to you in the morning" _Naru thought as she walked down the hallway with TenTen.

When the two reached the elevator Naru turned to see TenTen smiling deviously making her curious, "hey what's that look for?" Naru asked in an accusatory tone.

TenTen just turned to the young idol and said "nothing" in a singsong voice as a sly grin plastered her face, _"I never thought I'd see the day when Naru was all flustered over a man" _the woman thought as she and Naru walked into the elevator, she then looked back at Naru, _"this is going to be interesting."_

* * *

Wow sorry for the delay, I just got a game and I really want to play it, I also got kinda ill last night when typing this so I couldn't go on typing, this chapter was to show Naru, Rei and Sasuke living together, the true fiction starts after this since I have now established what I wanted too.

I am really happy with all the feedback this fiction has received, it's really nice to read your reviews and thoughts, especially on Naru's gender and just so you know, I won't reveal anything until you have conclusive evidence that it is correct lol, so it may be smart to wait, but I do like hearing speculations.

Well that's all for now.

Reviews would be appreciated, but what's more important is enjoying the story

**-Aquilon**


	8. Rumours

Lean on Me chapter eight

Ok now I really am shocked, I never expected this fiction to be popular, I just write it because I like this fiction, strangely enough I have already hit 50 reviews, not the most reviews in the world, but more than I was expecting by far, I am very happy about this and well I feel like rewarding all of ya with another chapter.

I am especially happy with the gender confusion amongst readers, it lets me know that I am actually making you guys think and speculate, since that's one of the key points of the fiction (amongst many other things)

Well enough of this fairly long message and onto the story ^_^

**Rumours **

Rumours they're annoying aren't they, little stories of threaded together information or random gossip all formed into one to create something that is usually far from the truth and Naru knew this is what her and Sasuke living together was going to become. Yes now that TenTen had seen Sasuke it would spread amongst her 'colleagues' rather fast, sooner or later she was bound to here questions about some mystery man and she dreaded it.

As the elevator reached the underground parking lot Naru saw TenTen still wearing that small, sly and devious grin, she knew her manager wanted answers, she knew she should give her answers, yet she didn't want too, there was no way she could say the truth, simply because no-one, especially this woman, would believe her.

However she had to give it a chance, she dreaded rumours, they could ruin friendships and careers, not that she expected something as small as this to ruin her career. "Could you please stop smiling, it's kind of scary you know" Naru asked her manager as the two walked to TenTen's car.

"How could I NOT smile, the little Naru I know is growing up" she replied in an emotional way, however this was clearly put on to tease her.

"You so have the wrong idea" Naru said in a deflated tone, she could just imagine what her manager was thinking and whilst she really didn't mind her thinking it, she would mind if it got out.

"Oh do I now, a mysterious, well muscled hunk, topless in your home whilst complaining that he broke the dishes, I must have the wrong idea" TenTen replied sarcastically in a playful tone.

"He's just a friend you know" Naru told the woman in a futile attempt for her to believe her, failing in the process.

"I'm sure you are very good friends, mhmm very good friends" TenTen replied suggestively and she pulled out her car keys, clicking a button to unlock the car.

Naru blushed at TenTen's comment then mentally cursed her weakness towards suggestive words, she wasn't that emotionally mature in regards to romance if you hadn't guessed.

TenTen noticing this nearly squealed, Naru was so fun to tease, so cute and innocent, or maybe not so innocent, especially since TenTen had clearly seen some sort of spark between her and the mystery man.

"Please don't tell anyone" Naru pleaded in a quiet voice as she climbed into the passenger's seat of TenTen's car, she didn't want anyone to know, especially her bandmate Ino.

"Hmm, I don't know, I'll think about it" TenTen replied as she got into the driver's seat, despite her words Naru doubted that TenTen had any intent of keeping her secret, so she knew she had to spend the entire journey to the studio thinking of a way to lower the damage that TenTen was about to inflict.

So as Naru steeled herself, whilst getting into thinking gear she put on her seat belt and gripped her seat, after all, TenTen drove like a lunatic when she was excited.

* * *

Whilst Naru had to deal with her manager Sasuke got to relax, to a small degree it was unfair but Sasuke knew that soon would come a time where he had to search for a job, and the thought was actually quite scary.

Sasuke had no real qualifications that could propel him into a specific career; after all he never had time to. Instead his time after high school was spent on Rei, this gave him no opportunity to pursue any of his dreams. However you could call Rei a dream.

The other problem he had to deal with was getting Rei into school, she had never gone to school in the past but it didn't particularly matter, elementary school didn't start until age six to seven and Rei was well educated for someone still regarded to be a kindergartner, besides in Japan kindergarten was mainly for teaching children manners, in that regard Rei was excellent.

"_I'd still like her to experience kindergarten, she'd make some friends that way which would be nice to see"_ Sasuke thought as he looked at his daughter who was happily watching television, the sight made him smile, Rei had never had the privilege of her own T.V. so it was a relatively new experience for her, which made Sasuke feel even more appreciative towards his childhood friend.

"_Naru" _Sasuke thought absentmindedly, it had shocked him how much his childhood friend had changed, he had expected Naru to look different but appearing as a female was definitely not what he was expecting.

Yet despite his initial surprise he had already accepted it as fact, he still wasn't sure what Naru originally was but he had no doubt Naru was now female, especially since Rei didn't mention anything strange, meaning having a dick was clearly out of the equation.

"_Were you always this way?" _he thought curiously, but he'd seen Naru as Naruto naked plenty of times, well not completely but he used to get dressed in the men's changing rooms at school, no self-respecting girl would do that.

That's what confused Sasuke and there was no way he could ever come to a decision on what Naru was until she told him, for now he was content with accepting Naru as a woman, everything about her screamed it, so he took it as natural to accept it.

Sasuke knew that if he continued to think about it he'd just end up saying something stupid, he also didn't want to ruin anything between him and Naru, he didn't want to lose such an important friendship.

So using this reasoning he stopped thinking about the gender confusion surrounding Naruto and decided to apply his mind to other things, such as finding something to do, he couldn't watch T.V. well he could but he didn't feel like watching some children's anime.

"_Hmm I wonder if Naru has anything to read" _Sasuke thought curiously, though to be honest he highly doubted it, after all Naru and reading didn't seem to sound right, Naruto couldn't sit still long enough, so he guessed nor could Naru.

Despite this he decided to give it a shot, he hadn't really explored the entire apartment yet, so he decided to do that whilst searching for something to read.

First of all he decided Naru's room was definitely off limits, he didn't want her asking him if he'd been sneaking around her room, the thought to him was wrong in so many ways, but he did know there was another room connected to the kitchen.

So Sasuke decided to start there, first of all entering the kitchen and taking the door which was to his right as he entered the kitchen right on the far side of the room. As he entered he found himself in a room full of many random things, from a wine cabinet, to a billiards table to even a bookcase.

"Why so much random crap?" Sasuke whispered so Rei wouldn't hear, if worse came to worse he found a new toy to play with (the billiards table), however he did feel slightly appalled at Naru's decision to put random things in a room.

"This could easily be a dining room" Sasuke muttered, but then remembered that Naru lives alone, well had lived alone, so a dining room really wasn't necessary. "Well you could call this a study to some degree, it has a few chairs" Sasuke murmured.

What shocked him the most though was the fact that Naru had a bookcase, the same Naru who'd probably never finished a book in his/her entire life. Feeling curious Sasuke walked over to the bookcase and fingered the contents.

In the bookcase was quite a few novels from Shakespeare (translated into Japanese) and from some other great authors, but that instantly became very suspicious for Sasuke. _"There's no way the dobe could understand those books, Naru must be hiding something" _Sasuke concluded and began removing the books one by one.

As he removed the books he slowly began to uncover something similar to a box, Sasuke wondered how she managed to hide something like that in a bookcase but shrugged it off, the contents of the box was what was important, he for some reason felt compelled to know what it was.

"_Please don't be a sex toy or something" _he thought in absolute desperation as he stared at the box, suddenly feeling extremely nervous, whatever was inside that box was deemed necessary to hide, which wasn't a good sign.

As he stared at the box he decided there was no turning back, he couldn't not think about what could be in the box and it would just eat away at him if he didn't go through with it so with a reluctant sigh he reached towards the box.

* * *

Naru and TenTen arrived at the recording studio. It was a relatively small studio on the outskirts of Konoha but they provided excellent quality and that's what mattered, what was more important was the fact that it was free of charge as it was owned by the Hyuuga Record Company, which was a massive music based business from recording to contracting musicians.

As Naru hopped out of the car she went over her plan to stop any damage TenTen might call. _"Deny everything, I'm sure people will believe me more than TenTen, i've never been in a relationship so Ino will believe me over TenTen if I just deny everything" _Naru thought.

Obviously it wasn't a smart plan, but there was no other way to deal with it, all she had to do was act as if none of it was true, if she just acted unfazed she was sure she could fool them. So as she put on her most confident smile she walked into the studio, her smirking manager following close behind.

As she entered the studio she spotted her bandmate standing in the middle of the room, tapping her foot in irritation. "Ino!" Naru shouted out happily to the girl, who in response turned around and glared.

"Naru how long do you expect me to wa-" she started but before she could finish her complaint Naru glomped her happily, mellowing out the annoyed diva rather fast. Naru had that abnormal effect on her, most of the time Ino could rant away at anyone but Naru's happiness was strangely infectious.

"Good morning!" Naru said in an upbeat tone, this wasn't fake happiness Naru was genuinely happy to see Ino, despite her faults Ino was a good friend to Naru, and Naru often repaid her through her clingy actions.

As Naru continued to glomp Ino, the blonde became uncomfortable finally having to tell Naru to get off her, upsetting the red head a little. "Seriously I know you're happy but this is a little too much for you Naru" Ino 'scolded' and Naru merely laughed slightly.

"That's probably because of what Naru was up to last night" the red-heads manager said in a sly tone as she caught up to her client, causing Ino to gasp in shock.

"You don't mean" Ino said in a surprised tone.

"Ino don't believe a word she's saying" the red haired idol told her partner as she continued glomping her.

"What are you talking about Naru, I clearly saw that hunk in your apartment, you really got a good one!" TenTen said enthusiastically much to the surprise of Ino who was under the impression that Naru wasn't interested in anyone or anything.

"Is this true Naru?" Ino asked in a serious tone.

"N-no" Naru lied hiding her faced from Ino.

"IT IS TRUE!" Ino screamed happily diving at her red haired friend glomping her, "I never thought I'd hear the day, you don't know how happy I am" Ino said as if she was a proud older sister.

"It's seriously not true!" Naru denied, to be honest Naru wasn't lying, they got up to nothing last night, but TenTen was correct in that Sasuke was extremely attractive.

"Come on Naru, anyone can tell when you're lying, just come out with it!" Ino and TenTen told her in unison, Naru had no idea why TenTen needed to say it, after all she'd seen Sasuke with her own eyes.

Naru's plan had already fallen down the drain but all hope wasn't lose she could still salvage some of the situation. "F-fine, Sasuke was at my apartment" Naru admitted shyly.

"Ooh Sasuke is his name is it" the two said in unison once more.

"H-however w-we did nothing; he's seriously just a friend, we've known each other since childhood, he's going through some rough times so I-I" Naru said in a whisper so only Ino and TenTen could hear.

"Comforted him all night long with your body?" TenTen said suggestively causing Naru's face to turn bright red.

"No!" she screamed at the two catching every single employee's attention. "N-no, TenTen could you stop being so rude, if you must know he slept on the couch" Naru told them in a whisper face still bright red.

"That's a little harsh don't you think Naru?" Ino asked her friend. "I mean you have a spare bedroom if things were like you claim you'd let this Sasuke sleep there right?" she asked a completely plausible question.

"N-no he let his daughter sleep there" Naru replied before quickly covering her mouth, talking about Rei would lead to a completely different conversation if she wasn't careful.

"Ooh poor guy, going through a divorce and looking after a daughter on his own" the two said in unison again, seriously it was getting a little old to be effective.

"C-could you please drop the subject, I don't think he'd like me talking about anything passed that" Naru said quietly instantly making the two extremely curious. "N-now that I told you that will you please keep it a secret, I can't have it getting out to the press" Naru begged the two who stared at her as if she'd hurt them.

"The press, we'd never do such a thing Naru" TenTen spoke on behalf of the two.

"Yeah, I mean I'm in the same boat you are, but I don't keep my private life secret like you do, but I understand" Ino said, and suddenly Naru felt strangely touched.

"T-thankyou" she told the two with a little bit of a blush on her face.

The two smirked at this, "Since we're such good friends you'll naturally introduce him to us right?" Ino asked and suddenly Naru realised.

This was planned from the start.

* * *

Six hours had passed and the pair had nearly finished what they had left for their newest album, it would probably only take another day in the studio's if they were lucky, they had other work to do after all such as music promotional videos and a few personal jobs such as television appearances and modelling, but for today the work was completely finished.

"Ah I'm so glad it's nearly over" Ino said happily before glomping her friend. "Hey Naru, can I come over to see this mysterious Sasuke tonight?" Ino asked as if she was a little child, seriously she could act more childish than Naru when they weren't working.

"No" Naru responded making Ino go 'aww why' in response. "I said you could in about a week, I don't want people like you bothering him at the moment" Naru said, most people would take that as offensive but not Ino.

"Aww I won't steal him from you, promise" Ino said in response making Naru blush.

"You wouldn't be stealing anyone Ino" Naru responded making Ino laugh.

"You are sooo worried that I may steal him" Ino said as if she wasn't listening. "Don't worry though, I have Sai for now, he's a very interesting person" Ino said in a dreamy voice.

"_For now?" _Naru wondered before sighing. "As interesting as spending your entire day watching paint dry" Naru insulted, seriously she didn't see what Ino saw in Sai, he was so boring and wasn't particularly appealing to her.

"Oh but that's not the interesting part, behind closed doors he's a real beast rawr!" Ino said dramatically as she did a lion impersonation before laughing again.

Naru's face flushed at her comment. "Too much information Ino" Naru said in an almost disgusted tone, but in reality she was just embarrassed talking about people's sex lives.

Ino giggled "was Naru thinking something rude again you're quite the pervert" Ino said teasingly, making Naru feel even more uneasy.

"Hey you two it's time to go" the two friends overheard TenTen shouting, so they split up and waved goodbye, Naru went over to TenTen whilst Ino stayed where she was waiting for her manager to miraculously appear.

As Naru went over to TenTen she noticed the small grin on her face and suddenly turned pale. "So what were you two talking about?" TenTen asked curiously, but the tone she used when teasing was imminent was used, so Naru ignoring her walked out of the studio and over to her manager's car, TenTen watching this laughed slightly.

"So shy and cute, that's what makes her so fun to tease" she remarked before following after her client.

* * *

The trip back to the apartment block was rather long and now it was around 6:00pm, TenTen after a small heated discussion with Naru decided to leave her in peace for now, temporarily eliminating one of the problems Naru had.

What she was more worried about was what Sasuke had gotten up to, for some reason she felt an extremely bad thing had occurred whilst she was at the recording studio, she could only hope that she was wrong.

As Naru got to her floor she walked up to the door and inhaled deeply, "please say everything is where it's supposed to be" Naru whispered hopefully before opening the door. No-one called out to her as the door opened, but that didn't mean anything bad, from her current position she couldn't see anything wrong.

Quickly removing her shoes she walked into the living room where she spotted Rei sitting in front of the tv, her eyes completely glazed over as if she was some kind of drug addict. "Hello sweetie did you have a nice day?" Naru asked the little girl who slowly nodded her head in a trance.

Looking around the room quickly Naru couldn't see any sign of Sasuke and quickly asked his daughter about it. "Umm Rei honey do you know where daddy is?" she asked curiously and almost instantly the little girl pointed her arm forward in a drone like manner.

The action kind of scared Naru if she was to be honest about it. "O-ok Rei i'm going to go talk to daddy, you just stay here" she told the girl who nodded in response. _"I've seriously got to tell Sasuke to limit her television time" _Naru thought as she headed for the kitchen, when she entered she saw no sight of the man, but she did see food cooking.

"Sasuke where are you?" Naru shouted out and in response she heard a small laugh come from the room to her right, feeling uneasy Naru slowly walked into the room to see Sasuke sitting on one of the chairs with a glass of wine in his hand.

"Oh Naru I see that you're home, I think there is something we need to talk about" Sasuke said in a low, ominous voice.

"S-such as" Naru responded slightly scared. _"Wait is that my wine?" _she thought uncharacteristically as she looked at the handsome man.

"Ahem" he started and tapped a small box next to his leg which was hidden from view, Naru instantly froze in fear.

"Ahem, from Shounen battle manga to" Sasuke said in a gloomy monotone as he opened the box and pulled out some manga. "Shoujo Yaoi manga" he said letting out a low, dry chuckle causing Naru to blush heavily.

"You've changed Naru" he deadpanned.

"Y-you've got the wrong idea" Naru said futilely and Sasuke drank his wine in response. "I-it's the story I like n-not the b-b-boy x b-b-boy I promise!" Naru said before running out of the room in embarrassment leaving Sasuke in the room holding the Yaoi manga in his hand.

"Oh god how I hope she's telling the truth" Sasuke said to himself before throwing the manga back into the box and walking over to the billiards table. "More importantly though, that was kind of fun to tease her" Sasuke muttered as he set out the balls on the table. _"Dinner won't be ready for another twenty minutes anyway"_ he thought before he decided to play with his new 'toy.'

* * *

Meanwhile Naru ran into the living room where it seemed that Rei had stopped watching television, her vision no longer glazed, that calmed Naru slightly, finally someone who wouldn't tease her.

"Ummm" Rei said quietly and Naru tilted her head to the girl.

"Yes sweetie?" Naru asked in a motherly tone.

"What's Yaoi?" the little girl asked causing Naru to feel like she was going to collapse, even little Rei was taunting her, in response Naru slowly walked over to one of the lounge chairs and collapsed.

"Sweetie please don't ask such things ok, maybe when you're a little grown up I'll tell you" Naru told the little girl who pouted at her.

"I am grown up, Daddy calls me a big girl!" she replied in a cutesy angry tone that made Naru go 'aww'.

"O-of course you are, what I meant was, when you get to my age" Naru stuttered a reply. Of all people she didn't want the little cutie getting 'angry' at her.

"Oh ok" she replied before putting her hand on her mouth, before tugging at Naru's leg. "Will I be as pretty as you when I get older?" she asked voicing her admiration for Naru's looks.

Naru smiled at the girl and patted her head like she saw Sasuke do, "I'm sure you'll be even prettier" Naru replied which made the little girl giggle before running over to the grand piano, the curtains behind it weren't closed yet so a nice view of the setting sun was visible.

"What's this?" the little girl asked and Naru leaned over her chair to see Rei pointing to the piano.

"Ah that's a piano, you can play music on it, does it interest you sweetie?" Naru asked the girl who nodded which made Naru smile slightly. "How about I teach you some time then?" Naru suggested to the little girl who smiled happily a small blush on her face.

"Thankyou miss umm" Rei stuttered she just realised she didn't even know Naru's name.

"Ah I guess I haven't told you my name, it's Naru" Naru told the girl who seemed to repeat it a few times as if to remember it.

"Naru, Naru, NARU!" she repeated three times giggling afterwards, the sight made Naru's heart melt slightly.

As Naru got wrapped up in her own little world she heard Sasuke shout that dinner was ready and that kicked her mind back into gear, like in the morning Sasuke came in carrying the food, two plates were full of food and the other was a bowl.

"I made Ramen in apology for the dishes from this morning" Sasuke said quietly and put the bowl out in front of her, in it was indeed ramen but this seemed handmade, Naru was slightly touched by the thought.

"_Maybe having Sasuke and Rei around isn't that bad" _Naru thought before plunging into her meal. "Delicious" she said in surprise before stuffing more noodles into her mouth.

* * *

**(End Chapter)**

* * *

Ok Confession time, I really have no idea why I have taken so long to update, I apologise for it, I really just didn't write but all of a sudden I got some inspiration so I will be carrying on with this fiction, I hope I managed to capture some of its previous charm.

This chapter was to get back into writing it and to reveal Ino and TenTen's characters to the readers especially since they will be very important recurring characters.

Well that's all I have to say, I hope you enjoyed

**Reviews **would be appreciated.

-Aquilon


	9. Hanging Out Part One

Lean on me Chapter Nine

_Wow once again real life stops me from writing, however after some very nice reviews from _xXHaneliXx I managed to kick life in the face and start writing_, because i've had a looooooooooong break and I hope my skills didn't get rusty, btw I'm glad that everyone loves Rei!_

**Hanging Out (part one)**

It had been a nearly a week since Sasuke had partially forced his way back into Naru's life. So far Naru had no complaints, except a few broken plates and having her yaoi stash discovered. It had also been nearly a week since Naru said Ino could visit Sasuke, luckily she hadn't as of yet and Naru wished to keep it that way.

It wasn't like Naru hated Ino being around her place, in fact she loved it. Ino was a fun individual, somewhat overly sexual at times, but still fun. The thing Naru wanted to avoid was Ino meeting Sasuke and Rei, she knew it was impossible to stop as long as Sasuke was living with her but she didn't think Sasuke and Ino would hit it off that well.

Naru knew that Ino would undoubtedly be attracted to Sasuke's looks, but their personalities were too different. From what Naru had seen of her childhood friend, Sasuke wasn't the type to be overly sexual, nor did was he the type to like sexual advances being too hung up on Sakura.

In general Naru didn't want her two best friends becoming enemies it would just form a wedge between them.

As the red haired woman awoke she smiled, the alarm clock caused this. Number one it said the time was 10:00am which meant she got a lot of sleep and number two it said the day was Saturday.

As the beautiful red head rolled around in bed enjoying the bliss of a nice lie in the scent of toast wafted into her room. _"I could really go for some food right now" _she thought to herself, but that would mean leaving the warm confines of her bed. She knew whatever choice she made would also please yet annoy her at the same time.

"Not fair" she mumbled sleepily as her stomach grumbled trying to force her out of bed and towards the scent of food. "No, bed is better" Naru argued against her stomach but she knew she was losing this battle.

As she argued with herself a sudden knock at her door snapped her back to her senses. "Yes?" Naru asked instinctly.

"Ah Naru you're awake" Sasuke said from outside.

"Well done captain obvious" Naru groaned in reply, slightly irked that Sasuke had interrupted her very important decision making.

"Well I suppose you don't want this food then, I guess I can just eat it myself" Sasuke replied in a seemingly uninterested voice, but hidden in the depths of that voice was a small hint of a tease. This was followed by the sound of unnatural loud footsteps which seemed to be getting further and further away from Naru's room.

Naru's eyes suddenly opened in shock. "No, I'll eat it, I'll eat it!" Naru shouted out loudly to the retreating footsteps which stopped for a moment before seemingly returning to her door.

"You'll eat it will you?" asked teasingly once again. "I'm not sure, on second thought it looks mighty tempting just to eat it myself" Sasuke told Naru as he stood outside her door, holding a tray in his hand.

"Y-you wouldn't" Naru stuttered as if calling a bluff.

"I would" Sasuke replied in a serious tone.

"_That's true" _Naru thought sadly. "P-please can I have it?" Naru asked still lying in bed, but she didn't think her friend would just give it to her, for some reason she suspected that he was planning to tease her all along.

"What's in it for me?" Sasuke asked the woman, still standing outside the room.

"Well for one you are living here for free what more could you want?" Naru replied, a grin on her face as she said this.

"Touché" Sasuke said causing Naru to laugh smugly. "However I still don't want to give this to you" Sasuke replied calmly annoying the red head.

Naru groaned loudly. _"Is he just here to taunt me or does he want something?" _Naru asked herself in her mind as she rolled over again. "What do you want then?" Naru asked in submission, her stomach had made her lose this battle.

"Rei wants to learn piano, you told her you'd teach her. It's been a week and she needs something to do other than watching T.V, so start teaching her soon. You'd both enjoy it so I'm just giving you a little bit of incentive" Sasuke told his friend.

"_Is that all?" _Naru wondered curiously, she had already decided she'd teach Rei starting Saturday night, however if it would get her breakfast she'd pretend like Sasuke had a hand in deciding it. "F-fine I agree to your terms, now give me that food, I'm starving" Naru whined.

Smiling as if he'd forced her into the decision Sasuke opened the door and walked in, seemingly unfazed by Naru's near naked form. Granted he couldn't see it clearly but the bed sheets clung to her in such a way that everything was visible.

On the other hand Naru began to blush furiously. She never expected him to just barge in once she had accepted his terms, not only that he was walking around topless again something that she warned him about countless times. "W-what do you think you're doing?" Naru stuttered.

"Bringing you your breakfast, you're still not that smart are you dobe?" Sasuke said with a smirk, obviously happy that he'd flustered her.

Over the past week Sasuke had gradually found enjoyment from teasing his friend just like he had when they were younger. He had no alternative motives behind his teasing; it was just fun to watch someone get flustered.

"Shut up teme you know exactly what I mean!" Naru screamed back at him trying to hide herself even more under the sheets.

"Nope I don't actually" Sasuke said in a dull tone as he carried over a tray of toasted bread and jam. "It's not the best breakfast but you threw such a hissy fit last time I made you an actual meal for breakfast, you think this will go to your hips as well?" Sasuke asked in a bored tone, but he was obviously taunting her.

"Hmph, you just wouldn't understand" Naru retorted angrily.

"Hah it's you who doesn't understand, I bet you are the sort who never puts any weight on" Sasuke said and when he noticed Naru look away in defeat he smirked.

"W-whatever!" Naru said in annoyance. "Anyways how many times have I told you not to walk around topless?" Naru asked angrily as she tried to change the subject.

"Six times" Sasuke replied much to Naru's surprise.

"Then why don't you stop it?" Naru asked.

"My white shirt is the only top I have, I tend to dislike wearing dirty clothes so I put it in the wash" Sasuke replied, there was no anger in his voice he was just stating a fact.

"I don't think you've cleaned it six times" Naru replied in a quiet voice, Sasuke merely shrugged.

"Who knows maybe I just like to walk around like this" Sasuke said as he walked away, Naru for some reason felt guilty, deep down she knew Sasuke didn't like to admit that he only owned one shirt.

"_It's like admitting you're poor" _Naru thought suddenly feeling guilty.

As Sasuke reached the door Naru decided to call out to him. "Hey you know when you said you'll teach me a few things about what looks good?" Naru asked catching the man's attention.

"Yes right before you're mum and dad showed up" Sasuke said before pausing. "Why?" he asked curiously.

"Ah well I want to take you up on that, I-I mean I have no plans for the day and I bet you're getting bored of staying in the apartment. Besides it would be good for Rei to get some fresh air" Naru told the man who seemed to be contemplating the offer.

"Hmm I suppose it will be good for Rei, I need to get her away from that T.V. before she becomes addicted. Literally she acts like some kind of junkie" Sasuke said loudly, probably intending to let Naru hear who smiled.

"Then it's a dat- umm deal just let me eat and have a shower and then we can go out to the city. I bet you've never been shopping there Sasuke" Naru said in a slightly excited voice.

"Shopping?" Sasuke questioned.

"Ah nothing" Naru said uneasily. _"I can't tell him my intentions" _Naru thought.

"Ok then" Sasuke said in a bored tone before walking off leaving Naru in her room feeling slightly excited.

* * *

As Sasuke left the room he looked over to where Rei was sitting, which was directly in front of the T.V. " Rei could you please start eating your breakfast before it gets cold?" he asked his daughter who jumped at the sound of his voice, Sasuke reasoned he must of just snapped her out of her trance.

"Ok daddy!" the girl replied obediently not even turning around to look at her father, instead she began to multi-task which was eat and watch at the same time, Sasuke just smiled. He was just glad she was having some fun.

"_Though I really wish she can get some other hobby than watching T.V" _he thought hopefully as he walked over to the sofa where his breakfast was sitting. Unlike the small 'breakfast' he made for Naru his was a fully cooked breakfast, Rei's was similar to his just with smaller portions.

As he sat down he tapped his daughter on the shoulder when she turned around she was a questioning expression on her face, Sasuke swore he could go 'aww' but he wasn't that kind of person.

"Honey you should eat your breakfast faster and then have a bath with Naru, apparently she's planning on taking us around Konoha. Who knows if you're well behaved maybe I'll treat you to candy" he told his daughter in a level tone.

At the mention of the word candy Rei's expression went from a questioning gaze to an excited smile. "Really?" she asked as if she couldn't believe her ears, so when Sasuke nodded her entire demeanour changed, instead of eating slowly she attacked her food in what Sasuke could only call a massacre.

Yet despite the mess his little girl left behind he was satisfied because she was happy. To him Rei's happiness was all that mattered, Naru helped reinforce this through the last conversation he had with her when he was suicidal. In some way Sasuke could clearly admit that Naru helped him come to this resolution.

"_I will never let my parents get their hands on Rei" _Sasuke thought as he watched his daughter run off towards Naru's room leaving her plate behind sloppily, Sasuke didn't know why he thought such a thing, but it was probably because he knew if they did get his daughter like he'd originally intended; she would no longer be able to smile.

"_Well that's enough of the negative thoughts, I have more important things to do" _he thought as he looked to the plate with disdain before picking it up and walking to the kitchen, who was he kidding, cleaning was his only 'important' job at this moment in time.

* * *

Once Sasuke finished his important cleaning duties he threw on his shirt and sat on the sofa once more. _"I wonder what Naru's real plans are" _Sasuke thought curiously.

He knew Naru had some motive for wanting to go out because of how she spoke prior to arranging the trip around Konoha. _"I wonder if she's just bored" _he thought since it was the only plausible reason he could come up with due to Naru's unpredictability.

In the past Sasuke could never really guess what Naru was thinking as she always did something no-one would expect. It was part of what made Naru interesting to Sasuke.

"Well it's better than staying in the apartment doing nothing" Sasuke voiced his opinions, knowing full well that a change of scenery would do him good. During the past week he had gotten nothing done that he wanted to, instead he just sat at the apartment.

"Though I'll probably be frozen by the end of the day" Sasuke said as if he was telling a prophecy, it was no secret that the days were becoming colder and he guessed that without a coat he'd probably be in for a very cold day.

"_Being poor sucks" _he thought as he slouched back waiting for Naru and Rei to arrive which he knew would take about twenty minutes.

* * *

As he had predicted the two were finally ready after about twenty minutes, Rei was wearing similar clothes to what she had been wearing prior, however Naru was completely different.

In front of Sasuke's eyes was something akin to what Sasuke would have expected of a female version of Naruto. She had long blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes; she wore the same black coat that Sasuke had seen the other day, some black leggings and some expensive looking boots. The rest of what she was wearing was covered by the black coat, so he wasn't too sure what Naru was wearing.

"Blonde hair?" Sasuke questioned in a dumbstruck manner to which Naru laughed.

"We famous people need to hide our identities, it's only a wig Sasuke" Naru told the shocked adult, this kind of disappointed Sasuke but he didn't voice his thoughts on it.

"Famous?" Rei asked curiously, she knew what the word meant but she had no idea that Naru was famous. To her Naru was just a kind woman who was nice to both her and her daddy.

Naru hearing Rei's questioning voice looked down at the girl and smiled. "Ah I'm what you would call an idol" she told the little girl whose eyes widened at the new knowledge she gained before turning to Sasuke "seriously Sasuke I'd expect you to tell her something like that you know" she scolded lightly irritating the black haired man.

"Well it kind of slipped my mind you know, don't blame me" Sasuke said irritably.

"Calm it grumpy" Naru teased finding great satisfaction when Sasuke's eye twitched.

Rei watching the little scene giggled apparently finding the entire situation amusing, as did Naru who joined in with the laughter, leaving Sasuke the odd man out. "Ok you two that's enough" Sasuke said silencing the two; Naru however seemed slightly off-put by that.

"Kill-joy" Naru said with a pout before smiling again. "So aren't you going to tell little Rei who I am, or has it already slipped your mind?" Naru asked with a small smirk on her face, making Sasuke twitch again.

Sasuke feeling slightly annoyed at how she easily toyed with him decided to just play along. "Hm you're famous?" Sasuke asked making a shocked expression. "I would have never known" Sasuke said before turning around, smirking when he knew neither his daughter nor Naru could see him.

At that moment Naru was about to react but Sasuke cut in before she could speak. "So shall we get going, or are you going to stand there and brag all day?" Sasuke asked the woman as he turned around. "Come here Rei" he then said with a smile, outstretching his hand as he did so.

Rei seeing this smiled and ran up to him, grasping his large hand gleefully. "Let's go then" Sasuke said outstretching his other hand to Naru stunning her momentarily. Looking at the perplexed woman, Sasuke began to imagine question marks forming around her head, he found the image quite cute, for Naru anyway.

"_W-what does he want me to do?" _Naru panicked as she flushed slightly, she considered taking his hand but she could imagine it to be some kind of ploy knowing Sasuke. _"Well I am not falling for that" _Naru thought stubbornly and walked past the two making Sasuke smirk slightly.

"_Just as I expected" _Sasuke thought before following after her with Rei.

"Hey come back Naru" Sasuke called out as Naru opened the door and walked out, closing it behind her in the process.

As Naru stood outside the door she took the time to compose herself. _"Stupid Sasuke" _she thought as the man in question arrived with his daughter in tow. "Let's get going" Naru now composed said and walked to Rei's side.

"How exactly do we get into the city anyway?" Sasuke asked curiously.

"We're in a city, gee Sasuke I thought you were a genius" Naru said making Rei giggle again. As Sasuke was about to reply Naru stopped him with her own chatter. "So sweetie" Naru said catching Rei's attention, "is there anywhere you'd like to go?" she asked the little girl who seemed confused.

"Umm" the girl said cute bringing a hand to her mouth before shaking her head furiously.

"She hasn't really gone many places before" Sasuke told his childhood friend quietly, making her frown slightly.

"Well then, I guess we'll have to show her some, right Sasuke?" Naru said before looking at Rei and smiling. "Rei do you want to see the city?" Naru asked the girl in a motherly voice, surprising Sasuke slightly.

Rei not fully understanding what Naru meant nodded, assuming that whatever she was saying was good by the sound of her voice. "Then it's settled" Naru said, "I guess there are more things to do than I had planned" Naru said quietly.

"What did you have planned?" Sasuke asked suspiciously, making Naru flinch.

"Ah nothing important, just that silly little competition we talked about earlier" Naru said unconvincingly.

Sasuke eyed her suspiciously one last time before shrugging. "Oh well, so we going by car?" Sasuke asked the woman who shook her head.

"No child seat, and my car is well... not particularly useful when you want to keep a low profile" Naru admitted with a small grin of self satisfaction. "So we'll go by bus" Naru told the two and then clasped Rei's hand. "Hehe time to go" Naru said and began walking; this prompted Rei to walk and thus forced Sasuke to walk with them.

(Scene Change)

As the three exited the building, Sasuke began to notice a few people staring at them with small smiles on their faces. "Do you know them?" Sasuke asked his red haired, currently blonde friend.

"Huh?" Naru mumbled before Sasuke pointed over to a small group of people. "Nope, never seen them before, why?" Naru asked curiously.

"No reason" Sasuke told the woman and waited for her to take lead again, after all she knew the area much better than he did.

* * *

It didn't take long before the three were on a bus heading for downtown, after all public transport was brilliant in Konoha, it ran on time most of the days and came quite frequently as well. The three sat in the back, so all three of them could sit together.

"So where are we going first?" Sasuke asked as he slouched slightly against the window.

"Yeah, where, where?" Rei asked as she bounced slightly from the middle seat energetically.

"Hmm, I guess to some shops first, then depending on the time we will go somewhere to eat, then the park, then maybe a movie or something, I don't know" Naru said as she sat modestly in the space next to Rei, ignoring the stares of a few male passengers as she did so.

"Is that so" Sasuke said, slightly uninterested as he turned to the window. "It sounds kind of like a date to me" Sasuke said making Naru flinch slightly.

"Really?" Naru asked shocked by the discovery.

"Well yeah" Sasuke said sarcastically as he turned to look at his daughter bouncing up and down, smiling slightly at how excited she was, Naru didn't fail to see this.

"_He really loves Rei" _Naru thought, which made her feel slightly guilty for what she had said when Sasuke came to her for help. Naru shook her head afterwards in an attempt to forget her guilty thoughts, "So this is like a date... I wouldn't know, I've never been on one" Naru said as she looked to the side, awaiting the impending teasing that Sasuke was about to deal her.

"Really?" Sasuke asked dubiously, when Naru nodded he frowned slightly. "That's actually quite sad" he said slightly sympathetically, though to Naru it sounded more like an insult.

"Well I choose not to go on dates, I've never felt attraction to anyone before" Naru said, this was partially true, Naru rarely felt attraction to people; she didn't particularly see the advantage of relationships.

"Liar" Sasuke said childishly, "we used to do normal guy talk all the time" Sasuke said confusing Rei.

"Guy talk?" the little girl asked in confusion.

"H-he means we used to talk like guys, we were close friends sweetie" Naru said in response, this seemed to make Rei happy.

"Daddy and Naru close, like Mummy and Daddy were?" Rei asked with her limited knowledge, making Sasuke choke on what seemed to be the air itself.

"No, not like that" Naru said nervously.

"Oh" Rei mumbled, "why not?" Rei asked with childish interest, slightly annoying Sasuke, because he had no idea how he should explain to his daughter how wrong it would have been, on so many levels.

"That's because your mummy was so beautiful that I never stood a chance" Naru said convincingly before turning to Sasuke and winking, Rei seemed to love this explanation; after all she admired her dead mother more than anyone else.

"_Nice save" _Sasuke thought appreciatively as he looked at Naru to notice a sad look in her eyes. _"I wonder what that is about" _Sasuke thought curiously as the bus came to a halt.

* * *

As the three got off the bus, father and daughter linked hands again but Naru didn't join in this time. As the two Uchiha looked upon the city for the first time they felt amazed. Large buildings spanning the entire skyline were scattered across the city making Sasuke feel strangely inferior.

"So this is Konoha's famous cityscape" Sasuke whistled showing how impressed he was.

"Yep and I bet you thought my apartment building was large" Naru joked as she looked side to side to see if anyone noticed her, luckily for her nobody had.

"Hm I guess" Sasuke murmured "so where are you taking us first?" Sasuke asked as he felt a chill from the near winter wind. "Damn its cold" Sasuke groaned in frustration, getting worried looks from Rei as he did this.

Sasuke smiled to reassure the little girl. "So lead the way Naru we're right behind you" Sasuke 'ordered' to which Naru obeyed.

"Ok then" Naru said as she dropped back to the side of the two, "I guess we'll go to a few shops first" Naru said unsurely before leading the way.

"_Clothes shops first, play on Sasuke's pride, get him a few clothes, stop him from walking around topless" _Naru thought things through as she helped the two Uchiha weave through the crowd of people which walked up and down the sidewalks.

"You said that you could teach me a few things, let's see if you can back that up" Naru said as the trio stopped in front of a clothes shop. By the way the windows displayed clothes the shop was mainly aimed towards a male demographic.

Raising his eyebrow suspiciously Sasuke smirked. "Fine I guess I can play along" Sasuke said as he walked into the store with Rei leaving behind a smiling Naru.

"Phase one complete" she whispered as she followed the man and his daughter into the store already scanning the store for what may look good on him. _"Nearly anything would" _she thought absentmindedly.

As Sasuke shifted through a few clothes with little interest, Naru walked up beside him and picked something off the rack. "Hm this might look good on you" she said with enthusiasm making Sasuke smirk.

"Red isn't a colour that suits me, blue does, as does black, sometimes white does as well" Sasuke claimed, at that Sasuke picked out a blue and white button-up checkered shirt with long sleeves and a collar, then with a yawn he grabbed a vest like white shirt and some dark blue jeans.

"Maybe this?" he asked with a small forced smile.

"Hmm, try them on, I'll get some other clothes for you with Rei" Naru told the man who shrugged and walked towards the dressing room. When he was out of sight Naru turned to Rei with a smile.

"Want to pick out something nice for daddy with me?" Naru asked the little girl sweetly, her reaction was wide eyed wonderment and happiness.

"Un!" the girl hummed happily as Naru took her hand and led the girl around the whole store, grabbing clothes as they went along, ranging from khaki jeans, jogging bottoms, cargo's, sweatshirts, dress shirts, polo's, long sleeved shirts, jackets, a coat and a pair of men's pumps. In general anything Rei nodded to Naru picked up, knowing that if Rei liked them and wanted Sasuke to have them, that Sasuke would take her 'charity'.

As the two stormed through the shop, the assistants were left amazed at their ruthless efficiency. They were also filled with excitement, hoping that every single thing that was picked off the racks would be bought, just imagine the income.

As Naru finished picking the last things that interested both her and Rei off the shelves they ended up in front of the underwear section. "Hmm, do you think daddy would want to pick his own underwear?" Naru asked nobody in particular, but just as Rei was about to answer Naru decided to leave the section, deciding that Sasuke would want to choose for himself.

As Naru reached the changing rooms she realised that Sasuke had been finished quite some time ago and was awaiting her and Rei's arrival. "Please don't tell me that you want me to try all this on?" Sasuke asked hesitantly.

"Yep isn't that right sweetie" Naru asked Rei.

"Yeah!" she said happily with a giggle making Sasuke flinch.

"_You can't refuse now!" _Naru thought sinisterly, feeling the urge to laugh triumphantly but she resisted it. "So how did you like the clothes you tried on?" Naru asked slightly disappointed that she didn't see him in them.

"They were... okay" Sasuke said slowly as Naru handed over a massive pile of clothes. "Wow these are quite heavy, how did you even carry them?" Sasuke asked feeling slightly impressed.

"You calling me weak?" Naru asked angrily.

"Well you are a woman..." Sasuke said slowly, "...well not all women are weak, but your physique well... doesn't seem suited for carrying heavy items" Sasuke said trying to make himself sound a little better.

Naru glared slightly but decided to take it as a compliment instead of an insult. "Well whatever" Naru said as she led Rei over to a small wall bench and lifted her onto it before sitting down. "Go try those on and show us each one" Naru ordered.

Sasuke would have said something horrible back but he reminded himself that he was still at her mercy, so to say. "Ugh, fine be right back" Sasuke said reluctantly as he trudged back into the changing rooms. "This going to take a long time" he said in a bored tone as he stripped down to try on the first outfit.

* * *

As Sasuke tried on outfit after outfit, modelling each one Naru suddenly became awed with his ability to pull off anything. "Your daddy has some kind of natural gift to look good in anything" Naru told Rei who beamed at the compliment.

Apparently Naru wasn't the only person to think so, unbeknownst to the two, a red haired woman had been watching the entire time, with great interest. As Sasuke exited the changing room with the last outfit he smiled tiredly. "Done finally" Sasuke breathed as if it was physically taxing.

"Willing to admit that I don't need to learn anything from you?" Naru asked slyly as she admired him.

"Will it get me out of trying any more clothes on?" Sasuke asked.

"Yes" Naru replied with a small grin.

"Then you Naru have surpassed me, is that good enough?" Sasuke said sarcastically, annoying Naru slightly but she accepted her victory.

"Sure, so how'd they fit you?" Naru asked, changing the subject.

"Perfectly, have you been taking measurements of me when I've been sleeping or something?" Sasuke asked bewildered making Naru flush slightly.

"No, not that I can remember anyways" Naru said jokingly.

"Then you may have?" Sasuke asked, he knew that she hadn't but he was just being playful, a rare occurrence for him.

"Of course not teme" Naru seethed back.

"Oh shut it dobe" Sasuke said with a small smile making Rei giggle.

"Daddy's having fun!" she proclaimed happily as he kicked her legs back and forth from her seated position, right next to Naru.

Sasuke hearing this felt stunned by his daughter's claims, but he wouldn't deny her outright. "Well it's better than being indoors" Sasuke said trying to brush off her claims.

"Aw Sasuke's shy" Naru said as she got to her feet and lifted Rei off the wall-bench. "Now get those clothes and walk over to the tills" Naru ordered making Sasuke flinch.

"Wait you are not thinking of buying all this are you?" Sasuke said in shock as Naru nodded. "No I won't let you, don't pity me" Sasuke said but then Naru turned to Rei and smiled.

"Don't you think daddy deserves this?" Naru asked the little girl calmly.

"Yep!" Rei agreed happily.

"That isn't going to work Naru" Sasuke said futily.

"Oh it will" Naru argued. "You see this isn't pity, this is like a loan" Naru claimed making Sasuke raise an eyebrow.

"Go on" Sasuke said reluctantly.

"Well how are you supposed to go to interviews in a simple white shirt and jeans?" Naru asked as she grasped for some form of argument.

"Not good enough" Sasuke said with a small smile, yet he was hurt by how she was blatantly pointing out his poverty.

"You're too stubborn" Naru said with a pout. "Please let me do this, you're living with me so why should this matter?" Naru asked.

"It just does" Sasuke said grimly as he looked away. As he stood there he felt a small hand tug his jeans.

"Please daddy" Rei asked, joining in with Naru. She didn't understand what was going on, but she wanted to see her dad happy, and she thought since he was happy earlier when he was wearing the clothes, they would make him happy.

"Rei, honey I can't" he said, denying his daughter.

"Please" she asked, mispronouncing it slightly.

As Naru watched this she smiled knowing Sasuke would cave in soon, because of that she walked up besides Sasuke and asked for the clothing from him. When he handed her the clothes she struggled over to the tills and started purchasing the clothes, against Sasuke's permission.

"Wait what do you think you're doing?" Sasuke asked dumbfounded.

"Buying these clothes" Naru replied sarcastically before pointing to her left. "Pick something out from over there" she ordered making the cashier smirk slightly.

Sasuke not understanding what was going on just obeyed, feeling both embarrassed and pitiful as he stopped in the underwear section.

As Sasuke picked out something reluctantly, knowing that if she was going to purchase all that against his will, he might as well get some underwear as well. "If you've eaten the poison, you might as well lick the plate" he murmured confusing his daughter slightly.

* * *

As Sasuke was picking stuff out Naru began talking with the cashier. "So is he always like that?" the woman behind the counter asked with a small smile making Naru laugh.

"He doesn't like people buying him stuff, sometimes he can be a big baby" Naru said, lying partially.

"Hm I see what you mean, but isn't this a little more than buying him a small gift?" the woman asked curiously.

"Well truthfully most of his clothes are really bad, but I don't want to tell him that, he gets so defensive about it" Naru lied perfectly making the woman grin.

"Ha, men" she said making Naru sigh in agreement before they both laughed.

* * *

As Sasuke heard Naru and the cashier laughing he suddenly felt as if he was being betrayed or something.

"Hi there" a voice said from behind him and his daughter, catching his attention.

As Sasuke turned around he found himself standing over a woman with long red hair staring at him with her red, spectacled eyes. "Hi" Sasuke said in an uninterested voice before turning around ignoring the woman, but that only made her more interested.

"I don't know how to say this tactfully so I'll say it straight out" the woman said truthfully before smiling, "do you have any modelling experience?"

"No, why?" Sasuke asked as he picked up a pack of stone grey boxers with a black waistband off the shelf.

The woman hearing this smirked and shifted through one of her pockets. "Well you caught my eye, and as a member of talent agency I'd very much like to have a chat with you" she said in a sultry voice.

When Sasuke turned round to look at her he noticed that she was holding out a small business card. "Hm" Sasuke murmured as he took the card from the woman. "Taka modelling agency" Sasuke read out the title as his daughter tugged his leg.

"Aw who is this little darling?" the woman asked in a fake tone to the handsome man.

"My daughter" Sasuke said as he read the card slightly. "So you want me to do what?" Sasuke asked as the woman smiled at Rei, the little girl however didn't seem to like her and stuck her tongue out at her.

"Well nothing for now, if you have time please stop by my agency Mr?" she said, signalling for him to say his name.

"Sasuke Uchiha" he said making the woman smile.

"Just stop by the agency Mr. Uchiha, please call first and ask for Karin." She told him as she looked at her watch. "Oh I have to run, please consider my offer, but don't think you've got a job because of it, come dressed nicely when you visit, it'll make a good impression" the woman said walking away with a small smile on her face.

"Daddy what was she?" Rei asked sounding slightly confused.

"I don't really know" Sasuke replied as he crouched down to look at her. "However it looks like coming here was good idea, don't tell Naru that though" he whispered to his daughter who giggled in response.

* * *

"Hm who was that with your husband?" the cashier asked a stunned Naru as she pointed to the red haired woman who was walking out of the store, licking her lips.

"I-I don't know..." Naru stuttered and then it hit her.

"Husband?"

* * *

**(End of Chapter)**

Well I never expected the chapter to be this long, I decided to split this chapter into two chapters because it was going to over-run, part two is yet to be written though so be patient.

I once again apologise for taking so long I just have so much to do that I forget, by the way this chapter actually was supposed to be rather different but then something took hold of me and made me write it out like this, I hope you enjoyed it.

**Reviews **are my energy source for writing, so they are appreciated.

-Aquilon


	10. Hanging Out Part Two

Lean on Me Chapter Ten

_What's up with me, two updates in the same month, am I sick or have I just regained interest? Everyone I recommend reading the fiction: __**He had no idea SasuFemNaru**__ by__** xXHaneliXx **__if you like FemNaru fiction, well that's all._

**Hanging out (Part Two)**

"Husband?" Naru asked in astonishment, gaining a questioning gaze from the cashier.

"You're not?" the woman asked slowly, slightly in disbelief gaining a fervent shake of the head from Naru. "Oh I'm so sorry, it's just you have that family vibe I see once in a while" the woman explained nervously with a small smile.

"Oh..." Naru said in a daze, smiling slightly "is that so" Naru commented as her thoughts drifted from her current conversation towards the woman who'd been speaking with Sasuke. _"Who is she?" _she wondered.

"So who's child is it, if you don't mind me asking" the cashier asked as she continued to scan the vast amount of clothing.

"His" Naru said as she turned to watch the father and daughter closely, the man seemed to be speaking with Rei whilst the little girl hung on her dad's every word. "Cute isn't she" Naru stated the woman sigh wistfully.

"I miss when my own were like that, they grow up so fast" the woman said sounding slightly upset, Naru felt slightly pained, after all she'd never really experience that. "Geez why am I speaking of mine like this, I must sound like an old woman" the cashier joked making Naru laugh.

"It's fine" Naru said as Sasuke and Rei began to walk over to her.

"Done picking stuff out now?" Naru asked in a fake impatient tone making Sasuke's eye sharpen slightly, amusing Naru. As he placed his chosen underwear onto the counter Naru grinned "I'll take that as a yes" Naru said mockingly.

"Tch" Sasuke grunted making his daughter laugh. "I'll be waiting outside, I don't think I want to hear how much this is going to cost" Sasuke said as he headed to the door. Rei however decided to stay behind with Naru, clinging to her leg.

"Naru, Naru!" she chimed happily making both Naru and the cashier to gush at her cuteness.

"Yes sweetie?" Naru asked as she knelt down to look at her at face level.

"Umm, bad lady, like you better" Rei said as she tried to formulate her thoughts into a sentence with her limited vocabulary.

Naru thought of this for a few seconds and assumed she was talking about the other red haired woman who was speaking to Sasuke. "Is she really a bad lady sweetie?" Naru asked sounding slightly concerned, though she was mainly humouring her.

"Uh-huh" Rei replied with a nod and a slight pout look, making Naru smile before getting to her feet.

"What was that about?" the cashier whispered to Naru in confusion making Naru smile slightly.

"Little Rei here doesn't seem too fond of that woman you pointed out" Naru said with a small proud smile. "She claims she likes me better, isn't that cute" Naru said as she got one of her credit cards out.

"Wow you've won his daughters heart" the lady said as she told Naru the cost, it was expensive for a normal person but for someone like Naru it wasn't much of a big deal. "You've done the hard part already" she then said as Naru handed her the credit card.

"What do you mean?" Naru asked, feeling genuinely confused, after all she hadn't ever dated anyone before, let alone a single father.

"You'll see" the woman said as she handed Naru a receipt. "That one may look grouchy, but he's a keeper, yum" the woman said with a little laugh.

"Thanks... I guess" Naru said unsurely as she shoved the receipt in her pocket and picked up the three shopping bags with one hand and linked hands with Rei with the other. "This is so heavy" Naru complained as she walked to Sasuke who was holding a card in his hand.

* * *

As Sasuke stared at the card he smiled, most people wouldn't recognise it because it still looked like a normal expression, but Naru could tell. "What you reading?" Naru asked as she walked over to the man with Rei.

Sasuke feeling no need to hide it from Naru held the card out for Naru to grab, but she had her hands full so she couldn't take it.

"Are you trying to tease me with your twisted sense of humour Sasuke?" Naru asked as she scrambled for the card, making Sasuke smirk.

"Trust me, it wasn't intended this time" Sasuke said in a bored tone. "Hand me the bags it's painful to watch" Sasuke stated with a smirk.

"Oh, such a gentleman you are" Naru said sarcastically and held the bags out for Sasuke who grabbed them all with one hand.

"Damn you're weak" Sasuke taunted as he handed the woman the card.

Naru deciding not to respond to his jibes stared intently at the card, disappointing the black haired man slightly. "Taka Modelling Agency" Naru murmured as her eyes went wide, "modelling... you?" Naru asked in disbelief, it wasn't that she thought he wasn't cut out for it; she just wanted to deflate his ego slightly.

"Yeah, why are you so surprised?" Sasuke asked, slightly annoyed by her disbelief.

"No reason" Naru said with a smile and handed back the card. "I've done some modelling before you know, it's harder than you'd think" Naru stated making Sasuke raise an eyebrow.

"Really, you?" he asked, this time it was his time to tease her.

"Yep, can you blame them?" Naru asked nonchalantly.

"Not really" Sasuke said honestly making Naru flinch slightly. "So where are we going next?" Sasuke asked changing the subject.

"Well some more stores obviously, we can't stop at just one you know!" Naru said in shock at his attitude.

"You've become such a girl Naru" Sasuke sighed as she ranted.

"Well duh" Naru said, leaving Rei clueless.

Sasuke spotting the look of confusion on Rei's face decided to urge Naru to get moving. "So are you going to stand around all day making a fool of yourself or are you going to take us around?" Sasuke asked impatiently causing Naru to huff slightly.

"Fine" she said and led the father and daughter down the street.

* * *

As the morning continued Sasuke found himself being drawn into shops which he could honestly say meant nothing to him. He was starting to gradually get frustrated at Naru asking him what he thought of the outfits she was trying on. At one point he considered telling her it looked bad so he didn't have to go into massive details about why it looked good but he just couldn't.

"Beautiful" Sasuke whispered as Naru stepped out of a changing room in an orange coloured sundress, he was planning to say it was bad, but it took his breath away.

"What was that?" Naru asked finding it hard to hear him over the sound of murmurs, these came from spectators.

"Nothing, it looks good" Sasuke said as he looked away, to see his daughter giggling at his behaviour.

"Daddy called you beau-"Rei started before Sasuke grabbed her and put his hand over her mouth.

"Shh!" Sasuke told her making her want to say it more.

"Hm, why do they even have these on sale, it's nearly winter" Naru said in disbelief. "Nah don't like it" she said before walking back into the changing room making Sasuke face-palm.

"Rei honey, don't tell Naru what I think like that!" Sasuke whispered fearfully, he didn't want his childhood friend and current landlord to get the wrong idea.

"Why?" Rei asked as she walked over to him, Sasuke noticing she was looking slightly worn out put her on his knee.

"Adult reasons" Sasuke said making Rei confused.

"Adults are weird" Rei claimed childishly as Sasuke bounced his knees slightly, rocking her.

"Yep we are" Sasuke agreed as Naru exited the changing room. "Hello there, finished yet?" Sasuke asked hopefully.

"Actually I am, I've picked some clothes. So you're going to have more to carry Sasuke" Naru claimed with a small smile and headed for the counter with Sasuke and Rei following behind.

"Carry your own stuff" Sasuke told her making her smirk.

"I'm just too weak for it" Naru replied in a playful, yet sarcastic tone. "Isn't that what you told me?" Naru asked the man, leaving him defeated.

"Sure, weakling" Sasuke agreed, resigning himself to his fate, but not without getting a chance to tease her.

"Great" Naru said happily, ignoring his little jab at her, once again leaving him disappointed.

* * *

As the trio left the shop Sasuke felt his stomach rumbling, apparently it was loud enough for Naru to hear. "Who's hungry?" Naru asked hopefully, hiding her own hunger pains.

"Me I guess, what about you Rei?" Sasuke asked the little girl who was looking like she needed to rest, as her response was a tired nod.

Naru hearing this beamed, she wasn't the sort of person who liked to make her hunger known, so when she was around others she'd wait until they were hungry, which sometimes became a problem when others like Ino were as stubborn as her.

"How about we stop somewhere to eat, I know this great place" Naru told the two.

"Sounds alright with me" Sasuke said warily. _"Oh god it's definitely ramen, but beggars can't be choosers" _Sasuke thought as he saw Naru smile.

"Ok then let's go" Naru said before turning to Rei who looked like she was about to collapse. "You tired sweetie?" Naru asked kindly making the girl moan slightly.

"That's a yes" Sasuke told Naru with a whisper. "She has so much energy that she expends it too easily when excited" Sasuke told her, preparing to hand her the bags so he could carry Rei. "Carry these will you?" Sasuke asked the woman.

"Can I carry Rei instead?" Naru asked hopefully causing Sasuke to shrug.

"If she lets you then its fine I guess" Sasuke told the woman before shivering, the cold was really getting to him.

Naru wasting no time ducked down to look at Rei directly. "Sweetie, are you getting a little tired?" she asked the girl who nodded, wiping her eyes slightly. "Do you want to be carried for a bit, until you are less sleepy?" Naru asked the girl hopefully who seemed to try her best to say no, but her tiredness wasn't letting her.

"Ok" the little girl surrendered and stumbled into Naru who picked her up, instantly beaming a big smile this didn't go unnoticed by Sasuke.

"You seem to enjoy that, isn't she heavy to you weakling?" Sasuke teased, making the woman blush slightly.

"Let's just say it's something I've always wanted to experience" Naru said cryptically before walking down the street with Rei in her arms, half-asleep.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sasuke muttered to himself before following her, noticing that Rei and Naru seemed to look as if they were mother and daughter, something that actually upset Sasuke slightly. _"Sakura" _Sasuke thought painfully as he watched the two from behind.

* * *

Walking through the town took longer than expected. Usually it would take Naru only ten minutes to reach her favourite ramen shack from the last boutique, but the weight of the little girl was slowly getting to her, slowing her down considerably.

By the time they actually reached the place, it was past mid-day, this little fact was quite surprising to Naru who suddenly came to the realisation that all her plans wouldn't be possible. Despite this she was having a great time, something that didn't happen very often due to the fact that she spent a lot of time on her own.

"Ichiraku Ramen" Sasuke said quietly trying to make it sound slightly enthusiastic but failing tremendously. _"Looks like I guessed right" _Sasuke thought before sighing slightly, secretly wanting to put the bags down as his arms were starting to get a little numb.

"Yep, best place in all of Konoha!" Naru chimed happily, ignoring Sasuke's discontented grunt which came shortly afterwards. "Wake up sweetie" Naru whispered to the little girl in her arms, shaking her slightly making her moan.

"Where we?" Rei mumbled half-asleep, messing up her sentence in the process, but it was understandable enough for Naru who smiled at the little girl.

"It's time for food" she told the girl whose eyes started to open much faster than before, when Rei wriggled, Naru assumed that she wanted to be put down, so with much reluctance Naru put the little girl down gently who stumbled over to her father's side, latching onto his leg for support.

"Did you enjoy your nap?" Sasuke asked the girl as Naru walked into the shack, the little girl who was still not fully awake, nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah" she said tiredly rubbing her eyes slightly as she spied her father's hand which she placed hers in. "Naru feels like mummy" Rei said in her semi-conscious state making Sasuke jerk uncomfortably. Regardless of how much he liked his friend, no-one could replace Sakura as a mother. Yet despite this, Sasuke didn't protest to Rei's comment, keeping his thoughts to himself.

"Is that so" Sasuke said quietly as he guided his daughter into the ramen shack whilst at the same time, trying his best not to get annoyed at Rei's comment.

* * *

After dinner the trio found themselves outside once more and Sasuke being the 'gentleman' he was picked up the bags. Once more sacrificing himself to the torture of carrying bags, it wasn't just because they were fairly heavy, but it was freezing which made it harder to carry.

The time was about 2pm give or take; this meant that if they wanted to get the bus back to 'their' apartment then they only had a maximum of three hours left. "So what are we doing now?" Sasuke asked as he adjusted his position.

"Park?" Naru offered mainly to Rei whose hand she was holding.

"Park, park!" the now fully awake Rei chimed happily making Sasuke smile slightly. After all he hadn't taken her out much as he had bigger things on his plate at the time. Now that things seemed slightly more stable he guessed he could give her the fun that she'd been lacking for so long.

"Sounds great" Sasuke said honestly making Naru smile slightly, Sasuke noticed this but decided not to take her up on it.

"Then let's go!" Naru said enthusiastically, raising her arm in the air, exciting the little girl who imitated her.

Walking to the park didn't take nearly half as long as the trip to Ichiraku Ramen. The park was extremely spacious; it possessed a small lake which lots of ducks swam in, countless plants which were slowly looking worse for wear in the winter air, a small fountain at the centre of the large park and finally a playground area which was their destination.

As it was winter there weren't many people around, in fact the only person around was an old man who was feeding the ducks with a solemn look on his face. The playground had no-one around which was slightly upsetting for Rei who pouted slightly.

"No-one's here" she said sadly obviously wanting to play with some other children. Naru noticing her disappointment tapped her on the shoulder making the little girl turn around "Huh?" she questioned cutely.

"Why do we play together sweetie" Naru offered with a smile, when Rei didn't reply Naru added "if you don't mind" making the girl giggle before pulling her arm to try and drag Naru to the playground.

As the two played, Sasuke sat himself down on a bench, gratefully placing the bags on the floor to relieve his arms. Watching the two play together he suddenly felt very uneasy. Rei was becoming very close to Naru at a frightening rate. He didn't mind them being close but he was still hung up on his wife.

He slightly wondered if Naru really wanted to try and replace Sakura as Rei's mother but he decided he was just being overly paranoid. _"Naru wouldn't" _Sasuke thought, however the nagging feeling returned. The way the two acted, the way Naru acted towards Rei. They had only known each other a week but they were already close.

"_Why did you have to die?" _Sasuke thought painfully as he exhaled loudly making his breath visible due to the cool air. He didn't want to think about it as it always upset him when he did, but November was close and that was always a bad time of year for him.

Before his thoughts got the chance to run rampant in his mind he shook his head. _"Being depressed won't change anything, besides I decided I wouldn't act like that anymore, for Rei's sake" _he chastised himself, but he knew as the date of his wife's death approached he would slowly get more and more depressed.

"_How did I even get onto this in the first place?" _he asked himself before remembering. _"Oh yeah, Rei and Naru" _he thought as he looked up to see them laughing together making him smile, it was quite the sight. _"Wait I don't want to see this" _he remembered before looking down. After a few moments he decided it was just some strange form of jealousy, manifesting itself as other fears.

"_As if Naru would try anyway" _he thought as he got up and went over to them so he could join in, to remove some of the 'jealousy' he was feeling.

* * *

After a few hours the three decided to return to the apartment, after the bus trip Sasuke had completely forgotten about what he was thinking about in the park. As they stood in front of the large complex, Rei walked in stride with Sasuke, who'd slowed his pace slightly for her.

"Did you have fun today?" Sasuke asked his little girl who giggled.

"Yeah!" she said happily, raising her arm like she had earlier. Sasuke didn't notice this and smiled at her joy, if Rei was happy that was enough.

After that they entered the building and slowly reached the room since walking around with lots of bags was quite the challenge. As they entered Naru's apartment, Sasuke quickly got to the sofa and placed all the bags down before sitting down in the leather chair.

"So tired" Sasuke complained slightly making Naru laugh.

"Now who's the weakling?" Naru teased with a small grin as she removed her coat and sat down on the free space on the sofa.

"Still you dobe" Sasuke stated in a matter-of-fact tone which made her pout.

"You're no fun at times you know?" Naru complained playfully making Sasuke laugh, but only slightly.

"If you didn't know that already I'd think you were an imposter" Sasuke said as he got to his feet.

"Where you going?" Naru questioned the man who stretched slightly.

"If I don't make dinner who else will?" Sasuke asked, when Naru was about to reply Sasuke interrupted with "and I mean real dinner not just ramen" making Naru close her mouth quickly. With a small mocking laughter Sasuke said "thought so" before walking into the kitchen.

Now that Naru was alone with Rei in the living room she decided to start teaching her how to play the piano like she promised. First of all Naru walked over to the piano and lifted the top so the keys were visible and then played a simple tune drawing the little girl over like she was a moth to a flame.

As the girl watched in wonderment Naru increased the tempo exciting her in the process and by the time Naru was finished Rei was practically begging her to have a try.

"Will I be able to do that?" Rei asked Naru as she sat next to her on the low chair.

"One day if you practice a lot" Naru said with a small laugh making the girl's eyes light up. "Do you want me to teach you?" Naru offered.

"Yes please!" Rei said excitedly making Naru smile.

"Ok then" Naru said as she patted Rei's head slightly making her giggle. "Do you mind me getting removing this wig first though?" Naru asked the girl who said that she'd wait in the cutest way that Naru almost aww'ed.

After less than a minute Naru returned from her bedroom, having removed her coat and put her wig in the closet and sat down next to Rei. "You ready?" she asked the girl who nodded. "Ok then, first of all."

* * *

After about ten minutes in the kitchen Sasuke returned to the living room to see Naru slowly teaching Rei the basics, the sight made him smile slightly. Rei genuinely looked interested, much more than she had by the 'magic box' which was the T.V.

As he watched them from the door he couldn't help but think slightly about what he had in the park but he shrugged it off when he heard a knock at the door. Naru hearing this looked like she was about to stand but Sasuke stopped her.

"Don't worry I'll get it" Sasuke told the red head as he walked to the door opening it to see someone with long platinum blonde hair and green eyes.

* * *

(End Chapter)

Wow long time since I updated, I genuinely have a reason folks. University has been dragging me down, beating me into submission, I managed to write for another story because when I got free time my attention span wasn't long enough to write chapters for this.

I'm very sorry and I will try to release another chapter this week, since I have a week off now because my tests are over.

**Reviews **are fuel to me and will get me to write, so don't be stingy? Lol.

-Aquilon.


	11. Best Friend

Lean on Me Chapter Eleven

Thank you very much you few reviewers, QueenKittyKat especially for her success, she is the first person to discover Naru's gender; she discovered this in a PM message, congratulations. Just to let you know, the secret will be gradually revealed starting this chapter; it should end by the climax of the next arc.

**Best Friend **

The platinum blonde observed the beautiful sight in front of her. Pitch black hair, much like her own man, steely black eyes and a bored expression. The typical 'cool' guy type that she was in to. As she let her eyes roam him without any restraint a small gasp was heard from inside the house.

Naru who'd become curious got to her feet and walked to the door, accompanied by her 'student' Rei. The sight was something she really didn't want to see at this moment in time. "I-Ino w-what are you doing here?" Naru asked the blonde, standing next to her was a confused looking Rei.

Naru was genuinely worried, she didn't want these two to meet, but she guessed it was inevitable. "Naru who is this?" Sasuke asked rudely with a blank expression on his face, pointing to the blonde as he turned his head to look at the red head standing behind him.

"Yes Naru, it's rude to not introduce me to this delectable thing" Ino said in a small squeal making Sasuke flinch slightly and Rei to hide behind Naru's leg from shyness. Ino didn't care about Sasuke's rudeness; in fact she didn't even notice it. She was the type of person who would often phase out anything that she didn't want to see.

"Oooh and who's this cutie?" Ino said excitedly, barging past the confused Sasuke bumping him to the side slightly as she made a beeline for Rei who hid herself even further behind Naru's leg, if that was even possible.

Naru felt like laughing, the first meeting between her two best friends was already off to a bad start. "Calm down Ino" Naru told the woman who stopped in her tracks confused.

"What have you done with my Naru?" she asked fearfully. It was expected, after all Naru was meant to be the over excited, hyperactive one, whilst Ino was the more calm and composed one of her group, the mini-role reversal was shocking to say the least.

Laughing slightly Naru pointed to Sasuke. "That is Sasuke" she told the platinum blonde, ignoring Ino's joke. Ino turned round and smiled with interest at the man who shook his head in bewilderment.

"I'll be in the kitchen" Sasuke said in a bored tone, using it as a way to escape. He disliked girls like Ino.

"Ooh he can cook as well" Ino giggled making Naru face palm and grab her by the shoulder.

"Quiet you" Naru told the woman who pouted in response; obviously she was more interested in watching Sasuke than listening to her.

"Buuut Naruuu" she complained childishly making Naru laugh along. "This is Rei by the way" Naru said getting to the point, putting her hand behind her Ino who looked seeing nothing there.

"Naru... there's no-one there" Ino said with a blank expression making Naru jumped.

"Huh?" she mumbled as she turned around, and just like Ino claimed, Rei was nowhere to be seen. She had fled cleverly in the confusion. _"Clever girl" _Naru thought proudly, but she also knew she couldn't keep Rei hidden forever.

Now that Naru knew it was just them two she leaned over and whispered in Ino's ear. "What do you think you're doing appearing out of the blue?" Naru said in exasperation making Ino laugh. "Stop laughing, we've had a tiring day, you chose the worse day to come around to look at 'eye candy'" Naru said with suspicion laced in her tone, making Ino look to the side, faking innocence.

This faux innocence didn't last long as it was replaced by a sly smile. "Tiring day Naru?" she said suggestively making Naru blush. "With the daughter in the apartment as well" she continued to tease, "Daredevil" she joked.

"I'm not a sex fiend like you" Naru said dryly with a slight blush making Ino pout again.

"What's wrong did I upset little Naru again?" she joked as she bounded into the living room searching for the cute little thing she had spotted earlier. Naru just placed her head in her hands before shutting the door which no-one had decided to close.

"_This isn't going to end well" _Naru thought despairingly. _"If I can just keep her from hitting on Sasuke at every chance I'll be able to limit the amount of damage" _Naru thought determinedly as she walked into the living room.

"Rei sweetie" she called out and nearly instantly the door to her room opened slightly, Rei's face visible behind the door frame. "Come on out. She won't do anything" Naru said encouraging the girl who looked at her with trusting eyes before leaving the room making Ino aww, but before she could 'assault' the little girl Naru scolded her. "Don't even think of trying" she warned making Ino stop in her spot.

"Fine" she said as she spied the bags on the sofa. Catching her eye as easily as bright colours distract ADHD children, Ino walked over to the bags and searched them without permission. Naru watching this wondered how Ino had grown up with so little manners.

"_Well she did grow up pampered to be a star" _Naru thought as she walked over to Rei and picked her up, Rei didn't struggle and allowed Naru to do this.

"Ino" Naru said making the woman lift her head to see the cute bundle in Naru's arms. Her 'aww' made Naru laugh slightly. "This is Rei, Sasuke's daughter" Naru introduced before squeezing Rei slightly. "Rei this is Ino, my best friend and bandmate" she told the little girl who nodded slowly in comprehension.

"Bandmate?" Rei asked as Naru put her down and unlike how Sasuke had always avoided the conversation, Ino was too happily to talk about it.

"You haven't told her yet Naru?" Ino asked in genuine shock. After all Ino always made sure to tell everyone she was part of Yama and Nami, it made people treat her differently, besides Ino lived for the publicity unlike Naru who preferred to keep her private life, well private.

"I was going to but I never got around to it" Naru replied much to the confusion of Rei who felt as if she was being excluded bounced a little in frustration, an act that Naru found adorable.

"Tell me!" Rei demanded like the child she was, making the overly enthusiastic Ino happily oblige.

"Well if you come here little Rei maybe I'll tell you" Ino said beckoning to her, Rei being curious fell into Ino's little trap. When she reached the platinum haired girl, the diva wrapped her arms around the little girl. "Aww so adorable, Naru I'm officially jealous!" Ino said enviously as she cuddled the little girl who squirmed to escape to no avail.

"That was mean of you Ino" Naru said in response making Ino laugh.

"Tell me!" Rei demanded childishly making Ino aww before conceding.

"Naru and I are part of Yama and Nami" Ino said proudly making Rei's eyes go wide in surprise.

"R-really?" the girl replied in awe, she hadn't heard much of their songs, but she loved them. She'd heard them on the T.V. from one of the many anime shows she watched. She'd also heard them at the bus depot on the way to Konoha.

Naru who wasn't too surprised at Rei's excitement smiled. "Of course sweetie" Naru said as she approached Rei and Ino. "Ino and I share the vocals, I make the music and she writes the lyrics" Naru informed her cutest little fan.

Rei hearing the looked over her shoulder at the grinning Ino and felt confused. "She writes lyrics?" she asked unconvinced this made Naru laugh and Ino frown a little.

"Little Rei is mean" Ino complained and squeezed her sides making the little girl giggle against her will. "She really likes you Naru if she's so mean to me" she said with a slight sulk making Naru smile inwardly.

"She has good taste" Naru joked making Ino laugh.

As the women gushed over the little cutie that Rei was, Sasuke watched from the kitchen door, eyes focused on the platinum blonde. He didn't know why, but she was very irritating. He often didn't feel like this, he'd usually put up with people like her. However Ino looked like the sort of person he could never get along with. _"Annoying" _he thought as he saw Ino cuddle Rei once more against her will, involuntarily twitching at the sight. As he was about to turn to walk back into the kitchen Ino turned around.

"Can't keep your eyes off me I see" Ino said with a sly smile making Sasuke frown in response. The way she looked at him irritated Sasuke. It was as if she was surveying a piece of meat. Usually a frown would discourage people, but not Ino who laughed just in response. "Cheer up handsome" she said in a sultry tone before getting to her feet letting go of Rei who stumbled over to Naru.

"Tch" Sasuke growled before walking back into the kitchen once again, funnily enough it seemed to be the only place of solace in the entire apartment.

"He's so much fun to tease Naru" Ino told her best friend who couldn't deny the truth to her words, despite that she still felt slightly annoyed.

"Could you stop teasing him Ino" Naru asked the girl who raised an eyebrow. "He may be calm right now but he can get so grumpy" Naru said ambiguously. She was actually referring to the time she insulted him when drunk upon their re-union.

"If that happens you'll just have to _calm _him down. I'm sure you know what I mean" Ino sniggered as Naru turned bright red.

"Yeah Naru can calm daddy easily!" Rei said with a giggle not understanding what Ino meant making Naru even more embarrassed. "Daddy is always happy around Naru!" Rei said surprising Naru. To her Sasuke came across as content, but happy wasn't what she'd call it.

"Aww, she's so adorable" Ino repeated once again, this time Rei giggled. "Naru you have done the hard part already" Ino claimed with a small grin.

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Naru questioned Ino who was wondering how someone as beautiful as Naru could be so innocent. "What do you think sweetie?" Naru asked the little girl who titled her head before shaking it.

"Naru" Ino said with a hushed tone and crawled over to Naru. "The hardest part about single fathers is their children" Ino said whispered. "Once you have them, claiming the daddy isn't hard" Ino finished making Naru blush furiously.

"How many times must I tell you Ino, that isn't my intention" Naru complained futilely.

"Fine then I guess I'll have to take him then" Ino said with a gleeful tone, the look that Naru gave her made her smile. "What you afraid of a little competition?" Ino asked making Naru shake her head.

"You have no idea what is going on Ino, please stop" Naru begged slightly. "Anyways you have Sai... as boring as he is" Naru said making Ino gasp.

"Sai isn't boring... in the bedroom" Ino started before instantly going to his 'good points'. Not even Ino could deny that Sai was a little boring, but he could be funny at times when he showed emotion, shame those were few and far between. "Anyways there isn't a rule that says I can't have two at once" Ino claimed.

Naru gave her best friend a blank expression. _"Seriously Ino you sound like a slut" _Naru thought but she didn't vocalise it. "Regardless, I'm not letting him stay here for your kind of reasons" Naru said with a slight frown. "Let's just get off this topic" Naru decided making Ino sigh.

"Fine" Ino conceded. "At least admit he's good looking" Ino said with a pout.

"Fine he's good looking" Naru said with a small blush just as Sasuke entered the room again.

"What was that dobe?" A voice called from the kitchen door when Naru turned to him she saw a small smirk plastered on his face. "Who exactly is good looking?" he said with sadistic glee as Naru avoided eye-contact.

"Oooh" Ino had to butt in making Sasuke grunt slightly. "Of course she meant you gorgeous, who else would she mean?" Ino said making Naru turn red as a tomato, Rei giggled and joined in with Ino embarrassing Naru further.

"Daddy thinks Naru is beautiful as well" Rei claimed making the grown man flinch. It was a slip of the tongue by a young girl who was caught up in the moment.

"Really?" Ino asked, when Rei nodded Ino directed a small grin at Sasuke who shuffled uncomfortably. "That looks like a yes to me right Naru?" Ino asked as she turned to the red head who was starting to have a brain overload.

"I'm saying nothing" Sasuke butt in with a bored tone, hoping it would steer the conversation off course. "I only came in here to tell you dinner was ready and I have to put up with this" Sasuke said in exasperation.

"Aww who's getting all shy" Ino joked making Sasuke glare at her slightly but it didn't even phase her.

"_Has this woman got ice for veins or is she just retarded?" _Sasuke wondered slightly as he walked into the kitchen and came out with some expertly made roast chicken, Naru wouldn't ask where it came from, nor would she complain.

"Hey where's mine?" Ino complained as she spotted only three plates.

"Why would I make you some?" Sasuke asked harshly. "Naru didn't tell me you were intending on visiting so I didn't make anything for any _guests_" he said in a hostile manner.

"Aww you sound like a married couple" Ino said gaining an instantaneous glare from Sasuke which was much sharper than the previous one, this one contained real anger and for the first time Ino was fazed by it.

"Far from the truth" Sasuke said bitterly making Naru flinch. She knew that Ino said something that she really shouldn't have. Even little Rei picked up on this, quickly grabbing her food and eating it so she could escape the hostile atmosphere.

Ino didn't understand what was so wrong about what she had said. She guessed that he had a thing against marriage, still under the impression that Sasuke was a single father undergoing a divorce. "Naru what is this about?" Ino whispered desperately as Sasuke continued to glare at the woman.

"Sasuke's wife died" Naru whispered back grimly making Ino's face contort. "Sasuke is going through some things right now" Naru whispered making Ino gasp.

"I hope you aren't sharing anything inappropriate Naru" Sasuke warned, albeit a little more gently than how he was treating Ino, but there was clear hostility in his voice. _"How could that annoying woman say that, do we really come off like that?" _Sasuke thought curiously. _"So is Naru really trying to replace Sakura?" _the thought returned to Sasuke's mind, the one thought he had dismissed earlier.

"I can say what I want Sasuke" Naru challenged making Sasuke look at her for a few moments before grunting slightly. "She didn't know Sasuke, could you please forget about it?" Naru asked the man who avoided eye contact.

"S-sorry" Ino apologised uncharacteristically, but it was a good start.

"Fine" Sasuke said as he carried his food to the small table. Sitting down to eat his chicken, even if he accepted her 'apology' he still looked annoyed. "Just don't talk about something so _idiotic _again" Sasuke said adding emphasis to idiotic, it slightly hurt Naru if she was to be honest.

"Don't fight" Rei cut in making Sasuke flinch. "Stop being mean to Naru" Rei requested cutely, Sasuke didn't really understand why she'd be angry about it, often or not she took his side on everything.

"_Why does this make me feel apprehensive?" _Sasuke thought warily as he spotted Naru take her food and begin to eat.

The atmosphere when eating was very heavy. Ino was full of remorse and Naru wanted to stay as quiet as possible. This made the meal silent and short. Naru offered Ino some of hers which she gratefully took.

When her part of the meal was finished Naru walked over to Rei who looked kind of sad at her father's outburst and tapped her on the shoulder. "Sweetie do you want to get back to practicing?" Naru whispered into the girl's ear.

"Un!" she chimed happily back, her smile revived. As the two walked over to the piano, Ino looked at Sasuke who was unmoved from his spot.

* * *

"Sorry again" Ino apologised after she swallowed some chicken. "I was just excited that Naru finally found someone" Ino admitted making Sasuke raise an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" he asked in a hushed tone, he didn't want Rei or Naru to hear.

"You are the first guy I've ever seen her interested in" Ino said as she looked at Naru who was smiling happily as she guided Rei through the basics, it was a genuine smile. "Naru tends to avoid most people" Ino said making Sasuke scoff for the first time in her presence.

"The dobe being shy?" Sasuke asked making Ino slightly interested as to where the weird nickname originated. "I don't think that in 'her' character" Sasuke said, saying her hesitantly making Ino slightly curious but she didn't ask about it.

"She has problems opening up to people" Ino said remembering the first time she met Naru.

* * *

-_Ino Flashback_

Ino sat in Neji Hyuuga's office, one leg crossed over the other feeling rather impatient. Ino was aged 18 and had been signed with Hyuuga Records since she was 15. Yet despite this she had yet to make her debut. In her opinion she believed she was being held back for no reason.

As she stroked a few strands of her platinum blonde hair behind her ear a knock was heard at the door. "Come in" Neji said in a level tone.

As the door opened Ino became curious and turned around to see two women. One was around Neji's age, she wore a suit of a businesswoman and glasses, her brown hair was tied up in a bun, besides that she didn't really interest Ino much.

The second was a little more interesting. She looked the same age as herself, possessing beautiful long red hair and alluring azure blue eyes. Despite her inherent beauty the woman was timid. She kept her head down and looked at the floor, unable to tear her gaze from the dark blue carpet.

"Neji, I brought her as you requested" the older woman said in a tone of familiarity, whoever she was she must have been close with the boss of Hyuuga Records.

"Thank you TenTen, would you mind leaving us alone for a minute" Neji replied politely with a small smile, it was an uncommon sight for Ino who made sure to burn it to memory.

As the woman called TenTen walked towards the door the red haired girl followed. "Not you" the boss said sounding slightly amused, the red haired girl turned around with wide eyes revealing her full face for the first time.

"S-sorry" she stuttered, Ino almost scoffed at the complete lack of confidence the woman oozed.

"_How could she be part of Hyuuga Records?" _Ino wondered slightly, looking down on the girl. _"Perhaps she is going to be my manager?" _Ino thought, after all she surely couldn't be a musician, not with that timid attitude.

"Please sit down" Neji offered the girl who nodded and slowly approached the seat, sitting down before crossing her legs much like Ino had.

"Now that both of you are here I have a proposition for you" Neji said in a businesslike tone which instantly got Ino's attention. Ino noticed though that unlike herself the red haired girl wasn't concentrating on Neji, instead she was shuffling uneasily in her seat as if she was being overly self conscious.

"Go ahead" Ino answered not waiting for the red haired girl who'd already made a bad impression with her.

"I'd like you two to form a pair" Neji said frankly striking a chord with Ino, the other girl though seemed to accept it much to Ino's disgust. _"She'll surely drag me down" _was Ino's first thought.

"No way!" Ino screamed out pointing at the girl. "I've never heard her sing! I don't even know her name!" Ino continued her hissy fit making the girl look downwards again nervously, before Neji could scold her, the red head spoke up.

"M-my names Naru Namikaze" the girl said shyly in her sweet voice which surprised Ino. "I-I may not look much but let me sing first" Naru asked making Ino scowl inwardly.

"Sure go ahead" Ino said encouraging the girl.

"R-right here?" Naru asked making the platinum blonde nod her head. Neji looked angry but he also looked kind of curious, Ino suspected that he hadn't even heard Naru sing.

"_Probably got some recommendation" _Ino guessed before turning her attention back to Naru. "Right here" Ino demanded making the young adult gulp.

"O-ok" she replied making Ino smile. "What should I sing?" she asked making Ino think for a minute.

"Hm, have you heard of Follow the Nightingale by KOKIA?" Ino asked with a small smile, thoroughly surprised when Naru nodded her head.

"Yes" Naru said and for the first time confidence bloomed in her voice. Ino and Neji both stared at Naru as she shuffled her seat forward to Neji's desk. "Do you mind me using your desk?" Naru asked the man who seemed amused and gave her permission.

Naru then started to drum the desk with her index fingers to the tune of the instruments. That enough was impressive for Ino but from the moment Naru opened her mouth, it was entirely different story.

Her voice was heavenly, her pitch was perfect and she began to hit every note flawlessly. Ino watched as a smile lit up on Naru's face as she reached the chorus, a cheerful expression which she had been lacking. It was energising and made Ino get caught up in her rhythm.

Ino didn't know when she started, but she joined in matching the red head it continued throughout the song. When finished Ino stared at Naru shocked, Ino would have to admit that the girl had real talent.

"Amazing" Neji said with a small clap making Naru blush. "So Mrs. Yamanaka do you think you can give her a chance?" he said with an all knowing tone.

"Yes" Ino said much to the surprise of the red head. "How could I say no to having such a talented girl as my partner" Ino said, attitude already changed. "Besides it's fitting that I'd have an equally beautiful girl as my partner right?" Ino said with a small smile to the red head who smiled brightly at Ino's words.

"Yes" Naru replied shyly.

* * *

The scene brought a smile to Ino's face. She had been completely wrong about Naru and it was one of the few things she'd admit to being wrong about. Since then the two had become best friends. Yet her insecurities were still visible from time to time.

"I see" replying to Ino's comment about Naru not being able to open up to people. It left him slightly curious, but he accepted Ino's apology nonetheless. "Just don't speak of us like that again please" Sasuke requested making Ino nod, but it didn't mean she wouldn't tease Naru about it.

"Well then I'll go wash up the dishes" Sasuke said taking the plate from Ino's hand.

"Quite the little homemaker aren't you" Ino jibed making Sasuke grunt before grabbing the rest of the plates and fleeing to the kitchen again making the blonde laugh openly.

After that she turned around to join Naru and Rei at the piano to play around a little more.

* * *

The rest of the evening was of a lighter tone. Sasuke had turned on the T.V. and began watching some cop drama that was on. The girls on the other hand played around on the piano, Ino who was also a beginner joined in as a student.

Rei was learning already and it made Naru feel a tinge of pride. "Hehe" the little girl giggled as Naru said she was already better than Ino.

"Hey it's not my fault she's a fast learner" Ino joked making the little girl giggle again, Rei seemed proud of herself which was heart warming for the two. "Watch out Naru today she's learning the basics but a few years down the line she'll be better than you" she joked to the red haired woman who actually thought about it momentarily.

"That's actually a possibility" Naru said bluntly. "I only started learning when I was 14" she said with a smile. "Rei has a nine year head start" Naru said with a smile before patting the girls head. _"That's if Sasuke doesn't move out at first chance" _Naru thought, feeling slightly upset at the thought.

"Either way I'm a singer, I'm not so good with instruments" Ino said in such a way that it sounded prideful.

"Whatever you say Ino" Naru joked making the woman fake a sob.

They continued like this for awhile until Ino got to her feet. "Well I think I'll head off now" she said making Rei openly express her disappointment with an upset 'aww'. This quickly changed when Ino patted her on the head and said "I'll come around again soon though" making the girl smile.

As Ino walked to the door she turned to Sasuke who was still engrossed in watching the T.V with numerous shopping bags around him. "See you later Sasuke" Ino said catching the man's attention.

"Yeah see ya" he said in a bored manner, but still brought a smile to Ino's face. With that Ino left the apartment.

"That wasn't so bad" Naru mumbled to herself before Sasuke turned around from his spot of the sofa and looked at her with a serious expression on his face.

"She isn't going to be coming around often is she?" he asked sounding slightly fearful of the prospect making Naru laugh.

"No but she will be occasionally" Naru joked making Sasuke grumble before turning around to watch his show.

* * *

(End Chapter)

Finally got this chapter out of the way. You may not understand what I mean by revealing what Naru is in this chapter but the flashback is actually quite revealing if you can delve into the psychological side a little bit.

Everyone the first true story arc is coming up soon, so look forward to it :) Trust me it'll be quite good

I'm officially aiming for 100 reviews now for some reason, so I'd appreciate all the reviews I can get.

Hope you lot all enjoyed, I'll try and update soon, however it should be noted **The more Reviews, the faster the update.**

-Aquilon


	12. Job and Education Part One

Lean on Me Chapter Twelve

_I'm so happy for the reviews everyone, thank you very much, the reviews get me writing, so it's due to those who reviewed that this chapter is being published. Special thanks to _**xXHaneliXx**_ and _**QueenKittyKat** _who are both awesome people by the way, _**check out their fictions too!**

**Job and Education (Part One)**

Nearly three days had passed since Ino's visit to Naru's apartment and Sasuke was finally getting started on finding Rei a pre-school. Sasuke originally believed it would be a simple process, kind of like a daycare service. When he attempted it he realised he had no idea on how to actually apply, feeling confused he decided to call in the 'woman' of the house.

"Hey Naru" Sasuke called out to the woman who was lounging around on the sofa, moaning of hunger.

"What is it teme? Can't you see I'm moaning here?" Naru complained as if she was crying out for attention. It was the first time that Sasuke had seen the red head like this and to be honest he found it rather amusing, but he wasn't in the mood for it right now.

"Yeah, yeah stop being such a wimp" Sasuke taunted, making his daughter frown a little. Rei herself was sitting on the floor, back against the front of the sofa watching the T.V.

"Daddy's mean" Rei defended the woman, once again showing how fond she was of his childhood friend which just added to his worries. For now though Sasuke placed them aside, he had to prioritize, and spending his time being paranoid wasn't at the top of his list.

"You're right sweetie, so mean!" Naru chorused adding extra emphasis on the 'so' which made her sound like a child. Sasuke merely frowned from the leather chair and wondered how he could find his childhood friend 'cute' at times. He did however find her annoying more often than cute; this was a unique situation where it was both at the same time.

"I'd understand your complaints if it hadn't been only three hours since I made you breakfast, is your stomach a bottomless pit?" Sasuke queried and he pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.

Naru turned slightly pink from the comment, hiding her face in the sofa to mask it. "Hmph it's rude to talk about woman like that Sasuke" Naru huffed making Rei giggle, luckily for Sasuke it seemed as if she wasn't going to 'scold' him this time.

Sasuke at this point realised he was being 'sucked' into the atmosphere, nearly completely forgetting about his objective. "Anyway" Sasuke began, "do you know anything about applying for school?" Sasuke asked the woman who rolled to her side and looked straight at him.

"You're a few years late you know" Naru deadpanned making Sasuke's right eye twitch. _"Can she take anything seriously?" _he wondered but shrugged it off, after all he remembered her acting serious at times, but more often or not she was carefree, in his presence anyway.

"Not for me" Sasuke said through grinded teeth. "For Rei of course" he said making Naru's mouth form an 'O', he smirked all-knowingly, she obviously did think Sasuke was going to apply for a school. _"Idiot" _he thought, but wouldn't say it, not when asking for a favour. He was smart after all.

Rei hearing this turned around and tilted her head. She had never been to any form of education, pre-school was far from normal education and it wouldn't even last half a year before she would be moving onto primary school, but Sasuke wanted her to experience some form of school beforehand.

"School?" she asked, getting onto her knees looking at her father with wide eyes making Naru silently 'aww' behind her. Rei genuinely seemed happy about the prospect. She had seen school on T.V. plenty of times and wanted to be with other children, she loved her father and she very much liked Naru but she yearned to be with other kids.

Sasuke smiled back at his daughter and nodded making her scream 'yay' which also meant he couldn't fail at finding a school now. "So do you?" Sasuke asked the woman who put a hand to her chin, as if she was thinking; the thought was absurd to Sasuke.

After a few seconds she finally stopped. "Nope" she said making the black haired man sight and facepalm. "However" she said, getting to her feet in the process. "Lemme just get something" she said before walking over to her room and entering it.

Rei just turned to her father and looked confused. "What's Naru doing?" Rei asked her father confusedly, Sasuke just shrugged.

"I don't know" was all Sasuke could say in regards to answering her. "I have problems understanding Naru in general" Sasuke told his daughter making her giggle. He wasn't sure why she was so fond of Naru, but he guessed it was because she hadn't had a 'mother figure' in years, even if it pained Sasuke to admit it.

After a few minutes the red head came bounding into the room carrying a laptop, nearly falling over and crushing it at the same time, luckily she managed to keep her balance. Sasuke didn't understand the sudden energy she'd gained. To be honest since meeting Naru there's been many things he couldn't understand.

"What's the rush? A few seconds ago you looked like you were going to die of starvation" Sasuke as the woman who just put the laptop on the small table and then sat on the sofa.

"I have an idea" she told him as she flipped open the laptop and booted it up, Sasuke curious got to his feet and walked around the back of the sofa, looking over her shoulder waiting for it to boot-up. Much to Sasuke's surprise it went straight to the desktop, apparently Naru didn't need a password.

However the thing that surprised him the most was the desktop background, it made his breath catch in his throat. It was a picture of two people; they were in their early teens. One had long pink hair and sparkling emerald eyes, she was laughing whilst clinging onto a black haired boy with onyx eyes. It was a picture that Naru had taken of him and Sakura when they were younger. _"Did Naru never forget about us?" _he wondered.

It was a reasonable question, most people actually rarely stay in contact after high school or when a friend moves away. This leads to the person not forgetting about them, but just not having as much affection for them. Apparently time hadn't stopped Naru from thinking of them and it actually warmed his heart a little. He was curious however why she hadn't picked a picture where she was included as well.

Sasuke didn't dwell on the thought though as he didn't really want to pry into something that he didn't really _need _to know. Naru who opened up the internet finally remembered that Sasuke was watching the screen and turned red. "Weird?" she asked the man without turning around making Sasuke laugh.

"No" was all he said making her smile. Naru would always cherish both Sasuke and Sakura for her entire life, both of them, and one of them more specifically played a very important role in her young life making them irreplaceable to her.

"So the big idea involves then internet?" Sasuke asked to change the topic.

"Google is the future" Naru said before laughing making Sasuke raise an eyebrow. "If that fails Wikipedia is always helpful" Naru finished making the black haired man laugh, Rei who was now curious climbed onto the sofa and sat right next to Naru looking at the screen quietly.

"I can't believe I thought you had an ingenious idea, I feel like an idiot" Sasuke said pushing back from the sofa and returning to his chair. The chair was now officially his, he made sure of it and it was an unspoken rule it seemed.

"Hey at least I'm trying to help!" Naru complained. "Or would you rather me complain about being hungry?" she asked the man who paled. "In fact" she said as she sharpened her eyes "haven't you got other things you need to attend to?" she asked the man who looked confused.

"You were given a business card Sasuke" she told the man who's eyes widened, he'd completely forgotten. "Do you know how hard it is to be 'scouted' on the streets?" she asked the man who smirked playfully.

"To be honest it was more a shop than a street Naru" he teased with the intention to teach her how others felt when they weren't taken seriously.

"Regardless" she started, making Sasuke's point fail. "Do you really think they'll wait around for you forever?" she asked him as she tapped Rei on the head. "Do you think they will?" she asked whilst shaking her head to give Rei the message.

"No!" she said, Naru in response tickled the little girl's side making her giggle happily. Sasuke knew he never stood a chance at making any decisions with Naru's ability to manipulate Rei so well.

"It's two to one Sasuke, I'm right" she said making him sigh.

"Fine miss genius" he said sarcastically. "Shall I ring them now? Will that make you happy?" he continued with the sarcasm making her smirk.

"Go on then" she told him.

It was hopeless, he couldn't win.

"Tch" he groaned as he got out of his seat and walked to a small bag which had his stuff in it, pulling out the business card. "Fine I'll call them now" he said as he sharpened his eyes. "You still going to try the internet?" he asked.

"Yeah, you sort out an interview... if you can and I'll deal with Rei's situation" she offered, Sasuke agreed to the compromise and walked over to the house phone. "Afterwards you can make me some food as a thank you" she teased he just gave her a bored stare and started imputing the numbers and walked out of the room.

"_That was cute... for Sasuke" _she thought with a smile, raising her fist in celebration momentarily before resuming her work whilst occasionally looking at Rei with a small smile on her face.

* * *

Sasuke held the phone to his ear as it rang and rang and rang. Either the place was busy for some reason or they liked to make people wait, which seemed to be a staple of large companies. _"Stupid, annoying Naru" _he thought as he tapped his fingers rhythmically on the billiards table in the 'recreation' room which connected to the kitchen.

As he continued to mentally berate the red haired female a woman's voice came to his ears. "Good afternoon, this is Satsuki of Taka Modelling how may I be of service?" the woman asked snapping Sasuke out of his mental rant.

"I was told to call you and ask for Karin" was all Sasuke said getting straight to the point, there was no need for pleasantries. "Something about a job interview" he added in an uninterested manner, his attitude came off as bad to the woman, but she ignored it.

"Right away sir, may I have your name to pass onto Miss Karin?" she asked politely.

"Oh, Sasuke Uchiha" he said making the woman on the other end gasp, Sasuke knew that kind of response, it was why he didn't like mentioning his name. "Is something wrong?" he faked obliviousness.

"N-no I'm fine" she said shakily, it angered him. "I'm sorry if this is rude, but are you perhaps related to 'the' Uchiha family?" she asked the man who sighed.

Seeing no point in lying he told her the truth. "I'm the son of Fugaku Uchiha" he replied, it was enough information for the woman to understand 'this man was born in the main family'. The Uchiha name had a lot of clout and could influence many people, but Sasuke didn't really like to exploit it, besides even if he did, once employers found out he had no skills they'd fire him anyway.

"So you are the brother of Itachi Uchiha?" she asked making the man lift an eyebrow, to his information Itachi hadn't really made a name for himself, so he was curious of how she knew of him.

"Yeah" was all he said, he didn't want to prolong the conversation any longer, he wasn't a real Uchiha anymore anyway, he was disowned after all. "So can you put me through please?" he asked with a kind tone.

"Of course" she responded with more vigour than before. "It was nice talking to you 'sir'" she said making him twitch awkwardly.

After less than thirty seconds a sultry female tone caught Sasuke's ears, it was undoubtedly Karin's. "I'm glad you've taken me up on my offer Mr. Uchiha" she started. Sasuke also heard a weird sound as if she licked her lips or something. "This conversation I'm afraid cannot be too long, but I'm sure we can talk more at your interview, or... maybe afterwards as well" she suggested making Sasuke raise an eyebrow.

"You're giving me an interview straight away?" he asked confusedly, wondering if his Uchiha status was the cause, before he could inquire he got an answer he wasn't particularly expecting.

"I've seen you with my own eyes and trust me, I think you have the right" she paused. "Assets" she said ambiguously "to do this job" she finished. Sasuke could tell she was smiling on the other end of the line by the tone of her voice and didn't feel too comfortable.

"I'm sure we'll see more at the interview anyway" she concluded making Sasuke slightly worried about his interview. "So the only business to get out of the way is this, what is the best time for you?" she asked.

Sasuke was wondering why he got to make the decision, but it didn't matter to him. "I'm free anytime, I'd prefer an afternoon interview if that is allowed" he said making the woman smile.

"Of course it is" she said as she opened her diary, pencilling in an interview for 3:00pm, it didn't matter if she wasn't allowed to officially do this, she'd get her own way. "3:00pm next Wednesday it is then" she decided, she did this so there would be more free time for the 'two of them' afterwards.

"It's okay" was all Sasuke said in response, he wanted the conversation over with.

"Perfect" Karin said cheerfully, "it's been nice speaking with you _Sasuke, _until next time" she said with a giggle before hanging up leaving Sasuke slightly flabbergasted.

"_I don't have a good feeling about this" _he thought warily as he returned to the living room.

* * *

As Sasuke entered the living room area Naru looked up from the laptop and gave him a questioning look. "I have an interview next Wednesday at 3:00pm" Sasuke told the woman who smiled happily at the news.

"Congratulations" she said before smirking. "It's just an interview though so don't get too cocky" she warned making him sigh, he wasn't feeling cocky anyway, more like unnerved.

"Well maybe you should wish me luck on the day" was all Sasuke said in response, Naru looked confused but she didn't press the matter. "So any luck with Google or Wikipedia?" he asked sarcastically making the woman laugh out at him.

"Yes there was actually" she said, his eyes dropped at her comment.

"You're kidding" he mumbled. He didn't mind that he was wrong to be honest, but the satisfied look on Naru's face was annoying him.

"So what have you found out?" he asked curiously, walking over to her as he said it.

"Well I've found out how to apply" she told him, noticing that he was paying her his undivided attention for the first time since they reunited, usually he'd be giving her a bored stare, but this time he was really listening.

"And?" he asked.

"Well that's all really" she told him but before he could complain she continued. "However now that we know this I plan on finding a local pre-school and seeing this through to the end" she told him, making him smile slightly.

"Who knows maybe I can get little Rei in as early as next week" Naru concluded proudly making Sasuke smile,

"Good work" Sasuke said with a sly smile. "For you" he concluded as he put the phone on the hook.

"Whatever Sasuke" she said making Rei giggle. "You excited Rei?" she asked the little girl who nodded her head. "Finally there's one last thing Sasuke" she told him, catching his attention once more.

"That is?" he asked impatiently.

"Make me some food" she 'ordered' making him raise an eyebrow before giving her a soft smile, which was uncommon for Sasuke.

"You do deserve a reward" he said as he turned around. "Okay then, I'll make you some ramen" he told her making her azure eyes go wide. "Would you like something too Rei?" he asked the girl.

"Yes please" she said making Sasuke smile.

"Fair enough" he told them before walking into the kitchen. If he could show his appreciation by making food then it was fine, because he really didn't want to express gratitude to Naru in the form of words, that would be... awkward.

"_One ramen and one random dish coming up" _he thought as he got to work at one of his few specialties.

* * *

The rest of the day went by pretty much the same. Naru had found a pre-school for Rei inside of Konoha, which was quite fortuitous for Sasuke who if all went to plan, could also be working in the big city.

As night fell, Sasuke settled himself on the sofa, closing his eyes to see the visage of a pink haired woman smiling at him from a hospital bed, her mouth moved but he just couldn't hear her. Whoever's eyes he was looking through felt relief, it was quite uncommon to feel that when a loved one was in a hospital bed.

However before he knew it the image changed, as did the feelings, now he felt sorrow, pain, anguish and broken, he didn't understand how the image could change so fast.

With that Sasuke's eyes opened, he couldn't fall to asleep. It was a sign for Sasuke, something that he knew all too well, November was coming.

* * *

Meanwhile Naru lay in her comfortable bed, to the unassuming eye she was completely at peace, but within her mind she was seeing something much different, she was dreaming of the past.

_-Naru Fourteen Years Old, Flashback_

Naru, her mother Kushina and her father Minato sat in the doctor's office. Naru had her head down, blonde hair littered her head. It had been grown out over the last year, since she was thirteen.

The middle aged doctor looked at some notes, he had been Naru's doctor for the last two years and since then Naru had become much happier, Kushina and Minato had noticed this and it brought joy to their hearts even if the situation wasn't ideal.

They were there for a very important meeting on how they would 'deal' with Naru. The person in question had her head down, eyes looking at the floor. She felt a mixture of both joy and apprehension whenever she visited the doctor. She just didn't know how to respond.

"So doctor" Kushina started snapping the man out of his thoughts. "We've come this far, will it be taken to the next step?" she asked the man. She sounded hopeful. Minato just looked away with an unreadable expression. Kushina was concerned for Naru and was one of her pillars of support since her 'problem' was discovered.

"Well Mrs. Namikaze that's down to Naru to decide" he said, sounding quite reluctant in saying that, he wasn't well versed in this sort of problem, so it was a new experience for him. "There are some risks to this though" he said looking Naru in the eyes. "Naru if you go through will this to the end you will never be able to have children in your life, it'll be physically impossible" he told the teen who looked away.

Kushina started at Naru with sympathy in her eyes, it wasn't Naru's fault she was like this. It just happened, nothing could control it. Naru was just born the way she was. She felt slightly responsible somehow, but Minato had told her plenty of times that it wasn't her fault, this didn't particularly help her.

Minato shared the sympathy, he loved Naru very much. He couldn't say that he was one hundred percent behind what was happening but he knew one thing. If Naru got better then he wouldn't mind, all he wanted was for Naru to be happy.

"I know it's quite the decision, but you can take your time on it you know" the doctor told the teen who wouldn't meet his eyes.

"I have a question" Naru spoke up.

"Ask away" the doctor said kindly, Naru hesitated slightly, biting her lower lip. Her figure visibly shaked, something that was all too familiar to the teens parents, she had done something drastic last time she was like that.

"Will this fix me?" Naru asked making the man's mouth drop slightly. "If it fixes me, then I'll do anything, even if I can't have children, I just can't bear this anymore" she told him making the doctor look away, he felt slightly guilty, of course Naru would want to go through with it.

"It will 'fix' you" was all the doctor said, and at that moment, Naru finally gave him something the he hadn't seen since they met.

A true smile.

* * *

Naru opened her eyes to greet the morning, wrapping one hand around herself uneasily. _"Why did I dream that?" _she thought curiously until an image of Rei popped into her mind. _"Oh that's why" _she thought as she got out of bed to start the day.

* * *

(End Chapter)

Can you believe it a third update in a short space of time, what's going on? Let's just say I have finally regained my passion for this story, thanks to some of the amazing reviewers, two of which are mentioned above, but I appreciate you all, those are just the ones that talk to me in PM's.

Like I mentioned some time last chapter I am gradually revealing Naru's secret, it will all come together in the future. The arc is starting, the arc that takes part in November, the arc which involves Sasuke and his demons and of course Naru's secret.

Oh here's a small trivia question. What Song was I listening to when the idea fiction came to my mind in October 2010?

Artist: T D G (Initials), Song: N T L (Initials)

Go on have a go everyone :)

Remember I am aiming for 100 reviews so please assist to the cause!

Hope you lot all enjoyed, I'll try and update soon, however it should be noted **The more Reviews, the faster the update.**

-Aquilon


	13. Job and Education Part Two

Lean on Me chapter Thirteen

Two more reviews for chapter Twelve that I got for Chapter Eleven... Let's aim higher! 14 more reviews to go lol. I would like to thank my brilliant reviewers. The consistent reviews of **Tachi Kagahara** are very much appreciated. Also congratulations to **Bailin **the second person to guess Naru's secret.

**Job and Education (Part Two)**

Over the week Naru worked tirelessly between her schedules to sort out Rei's pre-school. Multiple times Sasuke told her that she was doing too much, but Naru would have none of it and continued to do it alone. Usually Sasuke would stop her, but he kind of enjoyed seeing the woman try so hard for his daughter, even if it did give him paranoid thoughts of her true intentions.

Rei was her normal cheerful self, enjoying Naru's piano as her main 'toy' something Sasuke preferred over the television which Rei dubbed as the 'magic-box'. She seemed to be growing closer to Naru every day, sometimes falling asleep whilst leaning on Naru as they watched television together. These shows were often animes which Rei had picked, despite this Naru seemed to enjoy them a little too much for an adult, or so Sasuke thought.

The only person who had yet to do much was Sasuke. This made Naru's job of sending a weekly report to her mother on Sasuke's actions difficult. The only positive she could mention in the report was that Sasuke had an interview for the upcoming Wednesday.

Negatives in the report included his constant walking around half naked, which buying him clothes didn't fix, though in all fairness it wasn't a 'big' negative. She also mentioned that he annoyed her at times and was a little too grumpy for her liking. Despite this she never mentioned anything about wanting rid of him. In fact it was quite the opposite.

Three times she crossed out indications that he would potentially be moving out when he got a stable job. Naru didn't particularly understand why she crossed it out, but it was amusing to her mother who read the report with a small smile on her face.

"_I wonder what she wrote here?" _Kushina thought curiously as she read the handwritten 'report'. She would have preferred it via email but the risks of Minato popping up behind her when she was reading it stopped her. At least with paper she could destroy it before Minato could read it.

Despite it being a report, to Kushina it was more like a casual letter, which recollected on her daughter's week. Naru was never good at written work, but Kushina could tell that Naru was happy from the letter. She guessed that Rei had a big role in her happiness, after all she couldn't deny how unbelievably cute the girl was, but deep down she also understood that Naru was slowly growing attached to the black haired man.

"Be careful Naru" Kushina whispered to herself with a hint of worry in her tone, infatuation could lead people to do stupid things after all.

"What was that?" Kushina heard her husband ask curiously. In response Kushina screwed the 'report' up and shoved it into one of her pockets.

"Nothing important" Kushina lied expertly as she walked off to the kitchen to fetch herself something to drink.

* * *

The morning of the interview arrived and Sasuke for the first time was rather torn on choice as he looked at his multitude of outfits that Naru had forced upon him. _"She did say to wear something nice to the interview" _Sasuke thought to himself as he sifted through the bag which contained his things.

Usually Sasuke would be able to choose instantly, but the underlying importance of the interview continued to cloud his judgement as he found himself making decisions before swiftly swatting them down. _"Why can't I make up my mind?" _he thought to himself in frustration as he turned to the clock which read 6:00am.

"_And why am I up so early?" _he wondered curiously as he turned to Naru's door which wouldn't open for a few hours or so, the same could be said for Rei's door. His growing frustration was eating at him and he knew he'd probably have to eat his own pride and ask Naru for assistance.

He knew Naru had the day off since she had offered to take him into Konoha before taking Rei to see a few pre-schools in the area. Apparently there were quite a few inside the city and both Naru and himself agreed to check each one before making a decision. He trusted Naru's judgement; after all despite his dislike for the current situation, Naru did seem to really care for his daughter something which he had decided to put to the back of his mind for the time being.

Another thing that was eating at his mind was how Karin spoke to him over the phone. He knew she had some weird plans for him and whilst he knew it could be advantageous to get in her good books, he knew he would not enjoy being around her too much. She was the sort of person he usually disliked, he felt this from the first time he saw her.

As he put a few more clothes up against himself he shook his head. He just couldn't make up his mind, at this he turned his head back to Naru's door. He knew she'd mock him, and get angry at him if he woke her up for something so 'stupid'.

"_The interview is at 3:00pm I have plenty of time" _he tried to assure himself, but it didn't affect him in the slightest. He knew that getting the job would be the first step to regaining some of his tattered pride and not only that, it would also allow him to provide for his daughter, something that he'd been failing to do as of late.

"_When did I start caring what I look like?" _he added finally having enough of his own attitude, grabbing a chequered black and white buttoned up shirt, a white vest for underneath and some simple black jeans before throwing them down on the sofa.

With that 'difficult' decision down he decided that he'd have a shower before preparing breakfast like he did every morning since he moved in with Naru.

* * *

For the first time in a long time Naru was up early, 7:00am to be precise. As the scent of food reached her nostrils she smiled. Having Sasuke around had its benefits, food was just one of them. She wouldn't admit it to him, but she actually kind of enjoyed having varied meals instead of just ramen.

As she rolled over she noticed the sound of the television which meant Rei was also awake. A small smile crept its way onto her face at this. _"Who would have thought that I'd take a child to see a school?" _she thought to herself incredulously.

Feeling hungry she forced her way out of bed, which was quite the feat for Naru, who hated mornings more than anything. As the cold air touched her skin she quickly grabbed her dressing gown, enveloping herself in its warmth before leaving her room.

"Morning" she called out in mid-yawn. As usual she got very little response, Rei was too immersed in watching TV and she guessed Sasuke was concentrating too much on breakfast to hear her. Once again an involuntary smile framed her face as she made her way to the sofa, placing herself down next to Rei.

"Morning" she said again, this time directing it at the little girl, who turned and smiled at her adorably.

"Good Morning" she said with a small grin, excitement obvious in her tone. After all she knew she was going to be looking at pre-schools with Naru, something she'd been looking forward to all week.

"Excited?" Naru asked tiredly, she knew Rei was, but she liked hearing it from the little girl's mouth, it made her happier.

"Un" she replied happily as Naru turned her eyes to the screen and started watching one of the many anime that Rei watched. Just watching TV with the little girl helped to supply one of the many things that she would always miss out on. This meant she savoured every moment of it, even as an adult.

As the two became immersed in the show, Sasuke poked his head out the door. _"Ah she's awake I see" _he thought to himself, observing the scene briefly, once again feeling paranoid about Naru's intentions. As he observed them a little carefully he noticed how motherly she acted towards Rei, which was disturbing to the Uchiha who shook his head and entered the kitchen again, just so he could escape viewing the scene.

"_The sooner I can provide for Rei, the quicker I can leave, which means..." _he thought before coming to a stop. _"What does that mean anyway?" _he wondered until the smell of the food beginning to burn a little caught his attention. _"Forget it, Naru doesn't mean anything by her actions" _he thought as he turned off the oven.

Back in the living room Naru tilted her head slightly. _"Why was Sasuke staring at me like that?" _Naru thought curiously, after all she couldn't recall doing anything to make him glare at her. _"Must have been my imagination" _she thought before returning her attention to the little girl and the TV.

Moments later Sasuke entered the living room. The expression on his face was apathetic like usual which made Naru smile slightly. Truth be told, she'd hate for him to be angry at her. "You're up early" Sasuke noted making Naru giggle slightly.

"I'm as surprised as you are" she replied with a smile as Sasuke handed her a plate. "So you ready for your interview?" she asked as she grabbed the cutlery and dug into her food savouring the taste instantly.

"Yeah I guess" Sasuke replied as he sat down in his chair, he wasn't going to let her know that he was stressing out over what he was going to wear, that would just be embarrassing.

"Well you look good" Naru commented nonchalantly as she turned to look at Rei who was now transfixed with both her food and the TV. "Well if worse comes to worse you could always be my full time chef" Naru joked making Sasuke scoff slightly.

"As if" Sasuke responded making the woman pout in response. "that wouldn't pay anyway" Sasuke finished as he took a bite of his bacon.

"You'd get a place to stay" she played along with a smile making him look up, giving her an unreadable expression in the process, something which Naru didn't want to ask about.

"Hn" he mumbled as he continued to eat, Naru decided to shrug the entire thing off, it was too early to be fretting about things, after all Sasuke was always moody.

* * *

After a few hours the clock showed the time to be 12:00pm. Everybody was ready for their respective trips into the city. Sasuke would be dropped off at Taka Modelling Agency's office whilst Naru would visit the pre-schools in the area.

After a few last minute checks on his outfit Sasuke, Rei and Naru left the apartment and went to the car park where Naru's car was. "This is yours?" Sasuke asked seemingly impressed by the black sports car in front of his eyes.

"What can I say I like fast cars" Naru joked as she opened the back door for Rei. "Hey Sasuke will she be Rei be alright without a child's seat?" Naru asked as Rei got into the car.

"We never had a car, so it was never a problem" Sasuke murmured. "Just this once, but go slow" Sasuke warned the woman making her laugh slightly as she did Rei's seatbelt for her.

"Wow!" Rei exclaimed happily at the soft leather interior. "Comfy" she said bouncing as much as she could from her position making Naru laugh as she closed the door.

As Naru looked at Sasuke she noticed a slightly worried expression on his face. "It'll be fine" she said in regards to the interview. "And don't worry I'll go slow before you ask" she finished before getting into the car.

Sasuke calmed after that and got into the passenger's side, feeling slightly envious of his friend. "Remember what I told you" Sasuke told the woman who grinned as she put the key in the ignition.

"Yeah, yeah, find the place that is most welcoming I know" Naru said dismissively but she meant it, and Sasuke knew it so he didn't press the issue. "You ready Rei?" Naru then asked making the girl scream 'yeah!' as she got the car moving. "Next stop Konoha" Naru joked making Sasuke face palm.

"Just keep your concentration on what's in front Dobe" Sasuke said tiredly making Naru frown slightly.

"Whatever Teme" she replied as the set off for the city.

* * *

Due to the amount of traffic the trio arrived in Konoha around 1:00pm, usually Sasuke would prefer to be an hour early but since the pre-schools closed at 5:00pm latest he decided that he'd wait a little longer so Naru could check more out.

"So you ready?" Naru asked Sasuke as she pulled up in the car park of Taka Modelling Agency.

"I'm not a kid, of course I am" Sasuke said confidently as he stepped out of the car.

"I'll be here around 3:30, we'll wait from there on" Naru informed the man who nodded his understanding. "Good luck" Naru added.

"Good luck!" Rei chimed from the back seat making Sasuke smile and wave to the girl before walking towards the building.

"Well we should get a move on too" Naru informed the girl with a sing-song tone making her giggle. "I'm sure daddy will get the job" Naru added as she got the car into gear and set off for one of the many pre-schools in the Konoha area.

* * *

As Sasuke walked into the lobby he noticed how professional everything looked. The recently cleaned floor could reflect his own face and everyone was smartly dressed. It was quite a surprise for Sasuke who had been working as a cheap salesman for the past few years. "Who would have thought this would happen" Sasuke murmured as he walked up to the front desk.

"Have you got an appointment?" a woman from behind the counter asked with a professional smile making Sasuke reach into his pocket to grab the business card.

"I have an interview with Karin" was all Sasuke could say, the woman tilted her head and observed him carefully.

"You must be one of our applicants" she said as she brought up the database on her computer. "Name please" she asked.

"Sasuke Uchiha" he said reluctantly, making the woman stop searching.

"Ah you're who I spoke to on the phone last week" she said enthusiastically. "It's nice to meet you, Miss. Karin will meet you on the fifth floor. Just take the elevator at the end of the hall, she'll meet you when she's ready" she informed Sasuke who nodded his thanks before walking on ahead, eventually reaching the fifth floor.

Being roughly two hours ahead of time, Sasuke sat himself down in a small waiting area. In this area was a couple of magazines and a television. Since both of the magazines seemed to fit his 'taste' he grabbed the remote and turned on the television.

As the screen turned on Sasuke noticed the face of someone he knew very well. "We now bring you a special interview with Minister of State Itachi Uchiha on the recent crisis" the female announcer said stunning the man.

"I-Itachi" Sasuke stuttered quickly turning off the TV, not wanting to see the face of his brother. This didn't mean he disliked his brother, in fact it was quite the opposite, after all Itachi was the only person who openly opposed him being disowned. The thing that he didn't want to see was his brother as a politician, a job that Itachi would never take up of his own free will.

"Is dad pulling the strings again?" Sasuke mumbled as he put his head in his hands. "Still the same controlling bastard as always" Sasuke jumped to the conclusion as he slammed his hand on a low desk. _"What's been happening since I was thrown away?" _Sasuke wondered curiously. He never really cared before, but if Itachi was being affected then there was some cause for concern.

"_I just hope he doesn't take any interest in the son he threw away" _Sasuke thought as he took his head out of his hands. _"I'm free now, I don't think he'll come after me" _Sasuke thought optimistically as he tried to make his thoughts drift to something a little more peaceful, but it was to no avail, his thoughts always went back to Itachi.

"_God damn it" _Sasuke thought in frustration _"why does everything that man do have this affect on me?" _Sasuke thought in frustration as he let his mind mull over everything. _"I hope Karin hurries up" _Sasuke thought as he turned to a wall clock which read 1:20pm. _"Great, just great" _Sasuke thought as the long wait began.

* * *

(End chapter)

Ok you may be thinking, wait wasn't this supposed to be a two parter and not a three? Well actually I realise that the next chapter may be really long, like super long and I don't want to write it on top of this.

Sorry for the long wait for a chapter which hasn't got much plot development, but I will make up for that with the next chapter.

Answer to last quiz which quite a few got right, Three Days Grace – Never Too Late.

Once again I apologise for the shorter than usual chapter but I will make up for it with the next one!

Hope you lot all enjoyed, I'll try and update soon, however it should be noted **the more Reviews, the faster the update.**


	14. Job and Education Part Three

Lean on Me Chapter Fourteen

Chapter wise this is the largest fiction I have written between my two accounts, not in word count though. Special thanks this time goes to **The King in White **who can be accredited to making me write despite being sleep deprived from over studying. This should be the final part of this chapter which has gone on longer than expected.

**Job and Education (Part Three)**

As Sasuke sat in the waiting room, Naru and Rei arrived at one of the many pre-schools that were on Sasuke and Naru's list. This didn't mean that Naru would check every single one out. Instead she decided that she'd let Rei decide, after all it wasn't serious education. If anything it was more like a play area if she remembered correctly from her pre-school days, granted the memories were quite blurry, having occurred nearly 20 years prior.

As she climbed out of the car and walked around to Rei's passenger door she spotted a few children playing in front of the building which made her smile softly. She had always been fond of children, they were innocent and rarely judged others like adults did. As she looked through the car window she noticed the clear excitement on the little girl's face which forced her to smile at her as she opened the door and helped her out of the car.

Now that she was out of the car Rei started to feel nervous, this was clear in her body language as she clutched her red and white polka dot dress. Naru spotting this gave her a reassuring smile and extending her hand to her, something which Rei took appreciatively. "Remember it'll be fun!" Naru exclaimed enthusiastically to ease the girl's nervousness.

"Un" the pink haired girl replied softly, not as upbeat as usual, but clearly soothed by Naru's presence. As she clutched Naru's hand firmly she smiled before returning her gaze to the floor and allowed Naru to guide her through the front gates.

As they took in the sights a middle aged woman approached them from behind. "Can I help you?" she asked in an even tone, shocking both Naru and Rei who didn't hear her approaching.

As Naru turned around she took in the sight of the woman. She had long, untamed shoulder length black hair and unique red eyes. However that wasn't the only thing she noticed. "Ah, we're here for a visit" Naru began before directing her vision to the woman's stomach. "Congratulations" Naru added making the woman smile softly.

"Thank you" she replied before turning her vision to Rei. "And you are?" she asked the little girl who backed away and hid behind Naru's leg shyly making the woman laugh softly.

"R-Rei" she stuttered with half her face visible from behind Naru, at that the woman knelt down rather uneasily to meet her at eye level.

"Nice to meet you Rei" she said with a motherly smile which seemed to wash away Rei's nervousness. "I'm Kurenai Yuhi, but you're free to call me what you like" she informed the little girl who edged outwards, standing at Naru's side again. After this the woman gingerly stood upright, Naru lent her a hand gaining a small thank you from the woman.

"Hm and you are?" Kurenai asked Naru who froze for a moment. "Wait you look familiar... I've seen your face somewhere" she stated as she stared at Naru intently. "Ah you look like that Idol... uh" she said unsurely. "Sorry I don't follow recent musicians" she finished apologetically making Naru laugh.

"My names Naru" she said with a smile before looking side to side and leaning over to whisper to the woman. "And yes I am 'that' idol and I'd appreciate if you didn't tell anyone" she added before pulling back away.

"Ah I understand, mostly" she said with a smile. "Don't worry I won't tell anyone" she then added, gaining a relieved sigh from the famous idol. "Well let's not just stand around, how about I show you and your daughter around" she offered making Naru cough erratically. "I-is everything okay?" she asked making Naru nod her head.

"It's nothing" Naru replied as she looked down at Rei who didn't seem to be denying the claims, much to her surprise. "You just caught me by surprise this all" Naru replied, not refuting the claims to avoid the needless conversation that would follow.

"Ok then..." the woman replied as she guided the pair into the building which looked, at least from its exterior like the stereotypical day-care centre image. Down to the play area out the front, to the laughing happy children.

The interior didn't stray too far from the day-care like image, which was basically what pre-school was like. Toys littered the inside area which made Rei's eyes light up. Small low tables for children to sit at were situated at the far end of the room. The walls showcased hand-drawn pictures by the students most of which were crayon based works of art.

From Naru's angle she could the area behind the pre-school due to a see-through door where children were also playing, but instead of being on swing-sets and playing in a sandbox like area they were running around on a field of grass. In general it was quite a large facility, which felt very welcoming.

"This is where the children have their midday nap" Kurenai told the pair as she led them into a side room which had a lot of sleeping mats in, Naru knew Rei wouldn't be pleased at the thought of napping, but it was unavoidable for little children.

"Bleh" was Rei's response making the older woman giggle slightly, embarrassing the little girl ever so slightly.

"Rei sweetie, don't be rude" Naru chided making the little girl look away guiltily. "Sorry she's not a big fan of naps" Naru informed the woman who nodded her understanding.

"You'd find that most kids aren't" she informed as she led them out of the room. "In fact I'd think it strange if they didn't want to continue playing" Kurenai added with a chuckle as she smiled at Rei who nodded her full support.

"Yeah!" Rei chimed as she let go of Naru's hand, no longer feeling any nervousness. In fact it got to the point where she was walking a few steps in front of Kurenai. Naru did note however that there were no children inside at the time which may have attributed to her confidence.

"She's so adorable" Kurenai whispered to the red head who fervently agreed with the woman. "And that pink hair, I assume she asks you to dye it?" she asked curiously.

"Actually it's natural" Naru informed the woman who gave her a shocked look.

"A hubby with pink hair?" she asked jokingly making Naru laugh slightly.

"Ah no it's actually her mother's colour" Naru said reluctantly making the woman give her a strange expression.

"You're kidding right?" she asked Naru with an expectant tone, but when the idol shook her head Kurenai put a hand over her mouth. "I'm so sorry for insinuating" she apologised, something Naru waved off with her hand. "I just thought, you know, you get along so well" she continued bringing a smile to Naru's lips.

"I really don't mind" Naru informed her. "To be honest I'd go as far to say I am honoured that you'd think that" Naru said softly, making Kurenai give her an odd expression, as if she understood something that had yet to be said.

"Y-you can't have children can you" Kurenai whispered as Rei ran towards the end of the room to explore.

"No" Naru replied calmly, it hurt to admit it but she couldn't. "It's physically impossible" Naru added, knowing there was not much point in hiding the fact.

"I won't push the matter" the black haired woman replied with a small sympathizing smile. "Though with a kid like that" she said as she looked across the room to see Rei examining the pictures. "I'm sure you won't miss that much" she finished, confusing the idol.

"What do you mean by that?" Naru asked as she followed Kurenai across the room.

"Well she clearly see's you as something more than an older sister-type" Kurenai added much to Naru's delight, though she didn't show it because she doubted it as much as she loved the sound of it. "Well let's cut this subject short, the children should be returning inside soon and I need to sort a few things out" the woman told the red head before pausing for a moment. "Would you like to help out?" she offered.

"I'd love to" Naru said with a smile "just give me a minute" she said as she ran over to the little girl who was still surveying the pictures with childish delight.

From Kurenai's viewpoint she watched a scene what in most cases looked like normal mother, daughter interaction. She saw the red haired woman seemingly lecture the little girl who shook her head with a look of dismay on her face. However that quickly shifted to happiness, she guessed whatever Naru said to her pleased her.

Afterwards Naru walked over to Kurenai with a small grin. "What did you tell her?" Kurenai wondered curiously as Naru hummed a little.

"Well first of all I told her that I'd be going to help 'Miss. Yuhi' and then told her the other kids were coming inside and she didn't seem to take that well" Naru began as she turned back to look at the little girl. "Then I promised her that they will all love her because she is so cute, luckily she doesn't lack much confidence" Naru informed the woman.

"That's nice" Kurenai stated before motioning to one of the play areas. "Shall we get to work then?" she asked gaining a nod from the idol as they got to work.

* * *

As Naru helped out, a few children entered the building spotting the newcomer almost instantly. Whilst a few ignored the small pinkette, much to the little girls relief a few, mainly girls made their way over to her slowly.

At first Rei found herself backing off slowly, kind of stealthily but eventually she stood her ground as if it was some sort of challenge. Over the space of what seemed to be five minutes, she finally came in contact with one of the 'pursuers' returning her nervousness in the process.

"Play?" a little girl with brown hair and brown eyes asked Rei cutely.

Rei who was extremely nervous only managed to nod softly signifying that she'd like to play as well. In response the girl smiled brightly and grabbed her hand dragging her against her will towards the other children.

As she reached the other children who seemed to surround her with childlike curiosity shining in their eyes she looked at the floor shyly. "H-hello" was all Rei could muster causing at least two young boys to look away flustered.

As Naru turned around to see Rei swarmed by the children she smiled, thinking back on her blurry pre-school memories.

* * *

_-Naru 5 years old, Flashback_

"Why doesn't anyone play with me?" Naru asked curiously to nobody in particular with a doll in hand. Whilst most of the other girls played outside, Naru found herself feeling left out, especially since none of them would play with her.

So instead she found herself playing with a lone doll. It didn't bother her too much, but she did wish that the other girls would let her join in. As she continued to play a few boys laughed at her and walked off, once again this didn't bother her, boys were stupid after all.

As she spotted a few girls run past her, she decided that today would be her day, today they would let her join in. So after gathering her courage she stood up and walked over to them and as usual they gave her the same strange expression as always.

"What are you doing here?" one of them asked Naru who merely smiled in return, trying the friendly approach for a change.

"Can I play too?" Naru asked them, each one gawked as if she was an alien or something, this upset Naru but she kept it to herself.

"No!" the leader of the group said cruelly before turning around, not even gracing Naru with eye contact.

"But why?" Naru asked childishly as she waved one of the pre-schools dolls. "I want to play too!" she whined making a few of them laugh, this was highly confusing for Naru.

"Because you're different" they all said in unison, it was actually kind of spiteful, children were brutally honest after all.

"No I'm not!" Naru screamed back angrily, causing a few to laugh and a few to scream in shock. Before Naru knew it they had all run away, leaving her on her own once again.

After a few hours of playing on her own once more, her mother arrived to pick her up. "Mummy!" Naru screamed happily diving at the woman clutching onto her leg happily.

"Hey Naru, did you have fun?" she asked making Naru stop to think for a moment as she weaved her hand into her mothers.

"Hmm" she finally murmured once they got outside. "Yeah, but none of the other girls let me play with them!" Naru said childishly making Kushina turn to look down at her child.

With an odd expression, similar to what the pre-school girls gave Naru, Kushina chuckled. "Well I'm sure they'll let you play with them one day" she told her child.

"Really?" Naru asked excitedly.

"Really, really" Kushina replied as she guided Naru into the car.

* * *

As she came back to reality Naru chuckled. "Well at least now I know what was so different" Naru joked to herself. "If only I had come to such a realisation earlier" Naru murmured before walking off to help Kurenai, noting that the place was perfect for Rei.

"_I think we have a winner on the first attempt" _Naru thought in regards to a pre-school placement. _"I think I'll discuss things with Kurenai" _Naru finished, before getting back to work.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sasuke was still waiting. Over an hour had past and he was starting to seriously lose his patience. However as luck would have it, the woman he'd been waiting for walked into the waiting room personally. _"Finally" _he thought in relief instead of expressing it vocally since it would be a stupid move to make.

"Ah Sasuke" the spectacled woman said with a sultry smile, making Sasuke's skin crawl slightly. He was right in his assumption, he didn't like this woman. "You have no idea how long I've been looking forward to this" she continued with a glint of mischievousness shining in her eyes. "Now if you'll follow me" she finished, somehow spinning on the heels of her high-hell shoes and walking off, leaving no room for Sasuke to change his mind.

So doing as she wanted, Sasuke stood up and followed from behind, noticing how Karin swayed her hips as she walked, he did this involuntary after all she was walking in front. He had a slight suspicion that she was exaggerating her movements, but he wouldn't let that be known to the woman since he was desperate to get a job.

After what seemed like forever Karin stopped in front of a mahogany coloured door, which had Karin's name on it. "As you can see Sasuke, this is my office" Karin told him with a smile. "Usually we conduct our interviews with a panel of three, but this time around I have been given the exclusive offer of interviewing you on my own" she told him with a devilish smile. "Now come inside" she said in a tone that almost sounded sexual to Sasuke as she opened the door and entered the office.

As he walked in he was met by a bright sunlight. The office was like something a company executive would work in. A few bookcases, an expensive looking desk in the centre with a thin laptop placed on top of it, a water dispenser in the corner of the room, a small leather sofa, a TV perched in the top right corner of the room from where he entered and more importantly, full glass panel windows which showed a superb view.

Though he didn't intend to whistle he couldn't help himself, he was just so impressed at the sight. Karin attributed the whistle to an appraisal of herself, which gained Sasuke a bonus smile, which he didn't appreciate as much as the office view.

"Please take a seat, Sasuke" she said pointing to the sofa as she walked around her desk and sat at it.

As Sasuke approached the sofa he had to note that Karin was talking to him way too personally for his liking. _"At all the interviews I've been to the interviewer has always called me Mr. Uchiha or something along those lines" _Sasuke thought as he frowned.

"So what's going on here?" Sasuke asked, unable to contain his thoughts.

"Oh whatever do you mean, Sa-su-ke?" Karin replied as she placed her elbows on the desk, resting her head gently on her hands in the process. The smile she wore showed that she was more amused than anything else at Sasuke's question.

"This, all of this" Sasuke said as he near enough pointed at Karin, "the exaggerated movements are a little bit of a giveaway" Sasuke said moodily before biting his lip. _"Shit lost my temper and blurted out something stupid" _Sasuke inwardly scolded himself at his outburst.

"Fu fu" Karin laughed uniquely making Sasuke raise an eyebrow in confusion. He was expecting her to kick him out for his outburst, not to laugh as if it was of no consequence. "I'm glad that you noticed" she added making Sasuke's right eye twitch. "I wore this just for you today" she claimed; in reference to her skirt which clinged to her just right to show off her 'assets'.

Once again Sasuke twitched. _"This isn't an interview, it's more like something you'd hear on a cheap porn flick" _Sasuke thought angrily. "Whatever" Sasuke said as he swallowed his anger. "Can we just get on with the interview" he said coarsely. "...Please" he added, correcting his rude tone in the process.

"Why of course" she said as she removed her glasses and leant back in her chair. "But first of all, I must ask you" she said with a suspicious gleam in her eyes. "How much do you want this job?" Karin asked surprising Sasuke who sat rather stiffly on the sofa.

"What?" was all Sasuke could say, especially since by how Karin sounded it was as if she was mocking him.

"Well you haven't turned up with anything, no CV, no picture of yourself to show you can actually model, I was expecting a little more" Karin said 'disappointedly' making Sasuke frown. "Don't tell me you didn't know how we do things in this industry" Karin stated the obvious, just to watch Sasuke squirm.

"Erm..." Sasuke mumbled lamely.

"And that's why I'm asking you Sa-su-ke" she added again now leaning forward. "How much do you want this job?" she said in a firm tone. "Or more specifically, what are you willing to do to get this job?" she added as the firm tone melted into something more seductive and sultry and by the smile on Karin's lips, Sasuke could tell the woman was genuinely posing him the question.

"_How exactly should I answer such a question?" _Sasuke thought to himself, leaning back slightly to actually think about what Karin was asking him. _"The reasons for wanting this job are providing for Rei, for Rei, so I can provide for her... alone" _he thought as he brought a hand to his chin. "Let me ask you this" Sasuke started, interesting the young businesswoman.

"Go ahead Sasuke" she invited still smiling at him as she took in his visage with her eyes, enjoying the view in the process.

"How much can I make from this job?" Sasuke asked determinedly, needing to know how much of his pride he was willing to sell for the job.

"Let's just say, you could easily support yourself and a few others with money to spare" Karin replied as she took an interest in her nails, as if such amounts of money were beneath her. "That's if you're good" Karin added before smiling. "However I can assure you, take this job and you will be good, I'll make sure of it" Karin claimed confidently, clearly having faith in her own abilities.

"And what's the guarantee of this?" Sasuke asked.

"I've never been wrong, why do you think I have such an office despite being so young?" she said, highlighting the fact that she was young to him as if she was advertising herself to him.

"Personally I originally thought it was because you flaunted your way into that seat" Sasuke replied quickly before facepalming gently. _"I can't control what I say in front of her, she's just so annoying" _Sasuke thought as he removed his hand to see Karin grinning, as if she enjoyed the comment.

"Just keep going, I like people who don't hold back" she told him, once again sounding like she was trying to seduce him.

"_As much as I'd like to tell you how much I dislike you, I won't" _Sasuke directed his thoughts towards her, he knew that there were some things that you didn't say when someone told you such a thing. "Ahem" he coughed making the woman smirk. "So back to the point" Sasuke steadied the conversation. "Are you sure I will be able to support both myself and another?" he asked the woman.

"Most certainly" she replied. "I assume it's for both you and that precious little thing you had with you when we first met?" Karin asked, this time not laying on the 'charm' in her words.

"_She's not a thing, she's my daughter bitch" _Sasuke thought as he faked a smile. "Yeah you're right" Sasuke said hesitantly. "So about what I'm willing to do" Sasuke said shakily, he knew he'd be swallowing his pride.

"Yes?" she asked expectantly.

"Anything" Sasuke added.

"Excuse me?" she asked in a pleased tone with one arching brow.

"Anything, I'll do anything" Sasuke said through grinding teeth. _"If it allows me to provide for Rei alone then I'll do anything" _Sasuke thought as images of Naru and Rei flashed in his mind. _"Alone, for Rei... and Sakura" _he thought resolutely.

"That's exactly what I wanted to hear" Karin replied as she got out of her seat and weaved her way slowly over to the sofa, placing herself down right next to the man, causing him to stiffen instantly. "You do mean _anything _right?" she whispered into his ear making him shiver slightly.

"Y-yes" he said shakily, he had a good idea of what Karin was really getting at.

"So if I tell you, the job is yours, you'll do anything _I _want?" she whispered again as she pressed a hand against his leg.

"Y-yeah" Sasuke replied again. _"But I sure as heck don't want to" _he thought.

"Prove it" Karin ordered as her hand made its way up his leg slowly.

"How do you want me to prove it?" Sasuke replied, regaining his nerves. After all it wasn't like he was inexperienced at this.

"Hm" she said. "For now a kiss will do" Karin told him, making sure to emphasize the words 'for now'.

"Is that all?" Sasuke asked, that wouldn't be too hard for him, it was what she wanted afterwards that was potentially worrying. _"I still don't want to even be close to you though" _Sasuke directed his thoughts at Karin once more.

"Oh disappointed?" Karin asked slyly. "Unfortunately we can't have that meeting after this interview that I was hoping for. I have to go to entertain some executive at a business lunch instead. So as much as I'd _love _to do more, I just don't have the time to clean up" Karin told him confidently, clearly showing her long-term intentions of this deal.

"And I'll definitely make a lot of money from this if I agree?" Sasuke reiterated his previous questions.

"Definitely" she replied with a smile.

"Fine" Sasuke finished as he leaned over and furiously locked lips with the businesswoman, feeling no pleasure in the act as he felt a bit of Karin's tongue. _"It's for Rei, for Rei" _he thought as he mirrored Karin's actions, intensifying the kiss, pushing her down, much to Karin's enjoyment. The kiss continued too long for Sasuke's liking, which meant any time within the proximity of 0.1 seconds and onward. But when he tried to pull away, Karin wrapped her arms around the back of this head and pulled him back down. Eventually after what seemed like forever, Sasuke finally escaped his 'self-inflicted' torture.

"Mmhm" Karin said hummed in delight. "You're as good as I was expecting, and just as forceful, oh I think we are going to get on just _fine_" Karin told the man excitedly as she got back upright. "For now though" Karin said as she brushed some of her red hair back into place with her hands. "I'll congratulate you on getting the job. I look forward to how this relationship is going to develop" she finished, extending her hand as if she was sealing the deal.

Sasuke looked at the hand and decided there was no turning back and took it in his own. _"This is like selling my soul to the devil" _Sasuke thought disgustedly. "Thanks" Sasuke replied, rather violently but Karin didn't seem to take offense.

"I think you should go now, but before you do" she said before rushing to her desk and fishing out a card. "Here's my personal number, call me so I can get your contact details, after all you're going to have work flying in left right and centre, Sasuke" she said as she handed him the card.

"Ok then" Sasuke replied so he could end the conversation. "I'll call you sometime later" Sasuke finished as he walked out the door and ran away from the office to look for a toilet to clean himself up in, after all he didn't want Rei seeing him in a compromising position, not again.

* * *

As 3:30pm arrived, Naru and Rei sat in the black sports car which was parked in Taka Modelling Agency's car park. Rei having enjoyed her time at the pre-school decided she wanted to go there, which was perfect for Naru, because she too found the place to be brilliant.

As the two waited and chatted from time to time Naru spotted the figure of Sasuke walking out of the main building looking rather out of it. _"I wonder what's wrong with him, did he not get the job?" _she wondered as she beeped the horn of her car to get his attention, winding the window down at the same time to shout out to him. "Hey Sasuke over here!" she shouted catching his attention.

In mere moments Sasuke was at the car door and entered the passenger side.

"So how'd it go?" Naru asked, with Rei repeating the same question in a hyper tone.

Sighing slightly Sasuke looked down towards his feet, Naru noticed something was off with him but before she could say anything he muttered. "I got the job" stunning her.

"Yay!" chimed Rei from the backseat. "Congratulations daddy!" she cried out making Sasuke smile gingerly, something what Naru noticed instantly.

"Thanks honey" he said with fake enthusiasm that could fool a child, but it couldn't fool Naru. _"What's wrong with him?" _Naru thought in worry as she leaned across to look at him, noticing that up close he was pale.

"Are you okay?" she whispered into his ear making him laugh.

"Of course" Sasuke said, but it wasn't convincing.

"You won't tell me?" Naru added, sounding slightly hurt, but at the same time surprising Sasuke, who thought he could easily lie to the red haired woman.

"...No" Sasuke replied as he looked out the window. "But I did get the job" Sasuke added relieving Naru slightly.

"That's good" Naru said with a small smile. "Rei's chosen a pre-school and I agree with her one-hundred-per-cent!" Naru exclaimed energetically, hoping to liven Sasuke up slightly in the process.

"Really?" Sasuke asked in an unenthusiastic tone. "That's great" Sasuke added, unsettling Naru who started the car up in response.

"_I'll find out what's going on" _Naru thought as she put the car into gear and pulled away. _"For now though I'll let him think he's tricking me"_ she continued as she pulled away from the agency.

* * *

(End Chapter)

Hm so here's the final part to Job and Education, damn Karin you bitch. She just had to add to Sasuke's problems.

Just to let you know, if you are wondering about any of Sasuke's actions when he was making up his mind, all will become clear during this arc.

This is my second chapter in two days, amazing from me, but I am making up for the chapters that I didn't write earlier.

Just a quick point, I freaking hate writing kiss scenes with pairings that I don't support as you can clearly see by what I wrote :)

I hope you enjoyed and I hope that you leave me your thoughts in a review.

I'll try and update soon, however it should be noted **The more Reviews, the faster the update.**

-Aquilon


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